Etoiles
by chassecroise
Summary: Life as a professional dancer at the Paris Opera Ballet isn't easy, especially when you're falling in love with your extremely attractive dance partner and you live a double life as a superhero. (It's a magical ballet AU!)
1. Cinderella

**_Author's Note_ : **I've been planning this story for two months and it's finally ready to see the light of day! I'm really looking forward to going on this ride with all of you. I hope you enjoy it too! :)

* * *

Les petits rats, they called the ballet students affectionately—the little rats of the Paris Opera Ballet School, for the rapid pitter-patter of their feet on the rehearsal dance floor. Days started early for the little rats, waking up at 6:45 am and continuing, nonstop, until 9pm, when it was lights out.

It was a strict and disciplined lifestyle, fiercely competitive and only kind to those rare few who possessed both natural talent and mental perseverance in spades.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng was one such dancer.

By the age of six, it was clear to everyone in her family that she was destined to be a ballerina, and when she was accepted to the Paris Opera Ballet School at the age of eight, everyone was elated.

For the past nine years, she had worked harder than everyone else in her cohort combined, landing soloist roles in each of the annual showcases, working through every injury and sore muscle with a combination of sheer will and grit. It was her dream to become an Etoile at the Paris Opera Ballet, and she was convinced that with enough hard work, someday, she would get there.

There was only one thing Marinette had never managed to achieve: getting to know Adrien Agreste, who was the son of Gabriel Agreste, the director of the Paris Opera Ballet, and the most talented male dancer in the entire school.

Though Marinette and Adrien were the same age, he had started dancing earlier than her, and he was a year ahead of her. Though she had always been drawn to him, she had never had a chance to get to know him, and she dreamed of being his friend (and possibly more) from afar.

There was no doubt that he knew who she was; as the best student in her year, everyone knew who Marinette was. But none of them really had time to become friends. And sadly, before they even knew it, it was time for Adrien to graduate, and he left Nanterre for the glittering lights of Paris before Marinette could ever do more than say hello a few times in the dormitory hallways.

Luckily for her, her best friend Alya was a university student pursuing a degree in journalism, planning to cover the arts beat. She was well aware of Marinette's crush on Adrien and had willingly followed his flourishing career in Paris over the past year, while Marinette finished up in Nanterre.

Alya often sent Marinette emails updating her as to Adrien's whereabouts, with titles like "your lover is going to be in this show tonight!" with links to videos and clips.

Marinette always laughed at the emails, but she also opened every link and watched every video, and for Christmas that year, she saved up money and bought a fancy camera lens Alya had been wanting for ages as a way of saying thank you.

* * *

A few days before the performance showcase being put on by the new members of the corps de ballet, Marinette took a late afternoon train from Nanterre into Paris with the two other girls who were joining with her.

At first, she listened with mild interest to Alix and Aurore talk about the nightclubs they were planning to explore after the showcase was over, but she quickly zoned out and spent the rest of the ride gazing out the window.

It was almost sunset, and the light from the dying sun was warm and limpid on her skin, casting dark orange shadows. She wondered at all the things that were about to change; after years as a student, in a few months, she was finally about to take the first major step to fulfilling her dream of becoming a danseur etoile at the Paris Opera Ballet.

And she was going to see Adrien again.

She smiled at the thought and pulled out her phone and scrolled through some of the latest reviews Alya had sent her of his latest performance, and when she saw that one of them had a video attached of him performing the Prince's Variation from Cinderella, she quickly pulled out her headphones and watched him, enthralled.

Adrien _was_ the prince. He embodied the role; his entire being was immersed in the role, leaping three feet into the air as his facial expressions reflecting the pure bliss of infatuation.

He was beautiful to watch, and Marinette dreamed of dancing beside him. Hopefully, she thought, that day would come soon, though she knew she had competition in the form of Chloe Bourgeois, one of the other girls who had graduated a year before her.

But Marinette wasn't too worried. She knew how good she was. She would surpass Chloe in no time.

* * *

The next day, a few hours before rehearsal, she met up with Alya for coffee at one of their favorite cafes, a small place tucked away in Montmartre near Alya's apartment.

Alya settled into her chair and ordered two coffees as Marinette scowled down at her phone.

"Is something wrong?" asked Alya, raising an eyebrow. From Marinette's furrowed brows, it was clear that her friend was about to launch into a rant.

"I just received an email from Alix. There are more people joining the showcase. Some of the current dancers will be filling out the acts."

"Is that a problem?"

"No. But Adrien and Chloe are joining the showcase and doing the Cinderella Pas de Deux," said Marinette, puffing up with irritation.

Alya laughed. "That means you're going to see your Prince Charming again. You should be excited, not angry!"

"I'm excited about seeing him. But I'm not excited about seeing him dance with _her_."

"Marinette, they've both been here for a year and they graduated at the same time. And you know she's good—"

"Not as good as me."

"I know that. You know that. And you're going to show the directors, so stop worrying about Chloe Bourgeois. Let's talk about what you're performing instead. Is it exciting? Did Mademoiselle Etoile get a solo?" said Alya, as though Marinette hadn't been talking about the showcase nonstop for the past three months.

"Well, Alya, for your information, I'm going to be performing Kitri's Act I Variation from Don Quixote."

Alya gasped dramatically, eyes wide. "Is that so? It's the first I'm hearing this news! Why didn't you tell me before?"

She laughed as Marinette pushed away her mug and pulled out her phone to open the video of Natalia Osipova's performance and watch it for the 100th time, burning every turn and move into her brain.

"Girl, put that away. You've got this."

"Alya, you don't understand. Natalia Osipova _is_ Kitri. If I'm going to become an Etoile as soon as possible, I have to be the best. I have to do what she does even better than her."

"I know," said Alya. "And you will. But for now, can you please focus on finishing your coffee? You're gonna need the caffeine if you're going to be at rehearsal for the next eight hours."

Marinette looked up and smiled gratefully. "You know I love you, right?"

"I will if you empty that mug."

* * *

Adrien sighed as he set down his tea cup and looked across the table at his father, who was silent as he looked through his calendar at his daily schedule. As the director of the Paris Opera Ballet, Gabriel Agreste was probably one of the busiest men in the city, but until a year ago, he had always at least had time to shoot a smile across the table before he rushed out of the house.

But that was before his mother had passed away, right after he graduated from the Ballet School.

Adrien had thrown himself into every performance, losing himself in every role and spending as much time out of the house as possible, while his father had slowly become more and more distant, drawing into himself. He had never been a man of many words, but they had never been as sharp edged as they were now.

Every so often, Adrien's best friend Nino mentioned that he had a spare bedroom in his apartment and that he was welcome to move in if he ever wanted to, but Adrien didn't want to give up on his father just yet, even if every interaction they had now was cold and formal, always either a direction or a command.

Adrien noticed with concern that his father seemed particularly pale this morning, but he didn't get a chance to ask him if anything was wrong—the moment he started to say something, Gabriel's eyes widened at whatever he was looking at on the phone, and he rushed out of the room, not even waving goodbye.

Adrien sighed as he looked down at his own phone and saw that he would be late for rehearsal if he didn't leave himself. He got up from the table and pushed in the chair before grabbing his bag and walking out the door. Perhaps he could try for another conversation again at dinner.

* * *

At rehearsal, Marinette sat in the audience and watched with irritation as Chloe fluttered and twirled around Adrien. Though they danced well together, there was no spark in their partnership—though Chloe was clearly a skilled and precise dancer, she lacked both fire and passion. She was simply performing the role; she wasn't _living_ it, the same way Adrien was, and it took Marinette out of the scene completely. Marinette knew that given the chance, she would do a better job.

Still, she knew she had time. In the meantime, she had to focus on her solo. She was going to leave Paris breathless.

* * *

The night of the showcase, the entire theater was packed. Though Marinette's parents were out of town at a baking trade show, Alya and her new boyfriend Nino, who was a film student, brought all their fancy cameras and promised them they would capture every moment of Marinette's first big solo as an official dancer at the POB in clear and beautiful high definition.

And it was a wonder. Marinette was a whirling vision in red, beaming a million-watt smile as she jumped and leaped across the stage to the frenetic Spanish music, earning herself a standing ovation for her spectacular fouettes, and Alya smiled with happiness as she saw how happy the audience was to see her best friend's performance.

"Your friend is amazing!" commented Nino above the applause. "I know you told me she's good, but damn. That girl has skills! She is on another level—I'd even say she's almost as good as my best friend. I wouldn't be surprised if they get partnered up at some point. Something tells me they'd complement each other. Just an instinct."

Alya turned to Nino, surprised. "You never told me you were friends with any dancers. Who's your best friend?"

"Oh, I never told you? I'm sure you've seen him perform, since you said you come to these performances a lot. His name is Adrien. Adrien Agreste."

Alya screeched. "What?! Adrien Agreste is your best friend?! Why have you never told me this before?"

"Don't tell me you have a crush on him too!" said Nino, laughing. "The poor guy has girls falling all over him all the time as it is."

Alya shook her head and turned to look back at the stage, where Marinette was still bowing and waving to the audience, immediately starting to formulate a plan.

"Don't worry. I'm not the one with a crush on him."

Nino followed her gaze to the stage, his eyes widening as he realized what she meant.

"Oh. _Oh_. I'm gonna have to help you set them up together, aren't I?"

Alya turned to her boyfriend with a grin and a thumbs up. "That's right! Such a quick learner. That's why I like you."

Nino rolled his eyes. "Your name should be Emma Woodhouse, not Alya Cesaire."

"Well it looks like someone was paying attention in World Literature. Anyways, this is the plan. The Glass Slipper. Tonight. 10pm. Make sure he's there."

"Anything for you, Lady Wifi."

Alya groaned. "You know I hate it when you call me that."

"I'll stop calling you that when you stop complaining about the bad wifi signal in here."

"Hey, I promised Mama Cheng I would send her the videos of Marinette's performance tonight. It's the least I can do before I take her daughter out and get her hammered."

* * *

Marinette smiled with pleasure at the warm reception from the audience. Her solo had gone better than she could have possibly imagined, and even though she wished her parents were there to see her perform, at least Alya and Nino were filming it for them.

She scanned the audience in search of them, but found her eyes drawn to a tiny woman sitting in the audience instead. Though their eyes only met for a few moments, she felt shocked to the core as soon as they made eye contact.

Marinette knew she couldn't have possibly ever met her before, but something about the look in the woman's eyes made her feel like she knew all of her hopes and fears. she quickly left the stage soon after, completely unnerved.

* * *

Adrien sighed as the music began for his performance with Chloe and he stepped onto the stage. Although they had been rehearsing for weeks, he still didn't feel quite right dancing with her.

But he wasn't going to let that show. He gazed at Chloe and tried to imagine she truly was Cinderella as he circled around her and looked into her eyes. But even though their every movement was in sync, and exquisite in technique—they were both graduates of the school, after all— he felt an emotional barrier emanating from her, her eyes empty and listless. She wasn't a girl in love with a prince; she was Chloe Bourgeois, The Dancer.

Still, Adrien continued to support her turns, and gazed at her like she was a princess, but when he lifted her up and spun her around, he found himself distracted and looking into the audience, and locked eyes with a dark skinned, cat-like man sitting in the front row. The man had impossibly neon-green eyes and peered at Adrien like he knew all of his secrets.

Instinctively, Adrien knew that he should be nervous. But all he felt was curious, and after the performance, as they left the stage, he had to fight the urge to look back and meet his gaze again.

* * *

Marinette practically ran to the dressing room after her performance and slammed the door, overwhelmed by the emotions the mysterious audience member had triggered in her. She sat in the chair and buried her face in her hands, breathing heavily.

And then she heard the door opening once more, followed by footsteps that sounded as light as a feather, and she looked up. Standing right in front of her was the mysterious woman from the audience.

Up close, she was tiny and compact. Her freckled face and large ebony eyes were at once both ageless and young, dwarfed by a cloud of dark auburn curls. She gazed into Marinette's eyes with a look that was somehow both piercing and friendly, and Marinette wasn't sure if she felt more curious or unnerved by her presence.

" _Bonsoir_ , Marinette," she said, her voice as sweet and delicate as sugar. "My name is Tikki."

" _Bonsoir_ , madame," said Marinette, backing into her chair. "How can I help you?"

"I've got a question for you," said Tikki. "How would you like to be a _danseur etoile_ for the city of Paris?"

Marinette crinkled her eyebrows. "That's impossible—I just joined the corps de ballet as a quadrille, how can I be a danseur etoile? The auditions for coryphée aren't even for a few months! I won't be ready to be in that position for at least a few years."

Tikki shook her head and smiled. "This isn't for the Paris Opera Ballet. It's for something far bigger than that."

"I'm afraid I don't understand," said Marinette. "I've been preparing to be a dancer here my entire life. What could possibly be bigger than this?"

Tikki nodded, calm and knowing. "I know it's confusing. But you will, if you accept."

"But what am I accepting? What will I be doing?" Marinette protested.

Take these earrings and you will understand," said Tikki, holding out her palm. In them were two ruby studs that glowed brightly in the flickering light of the hallway. She pressed them into Marinette's hand and closed them with a sense of finality. It was clear that Marinette didn't have much say in the matter.

Still, she tried. "Why are you giving these to me? These are precious stones!"

"You have been chosen as an Etoile to fight and defeat Hawk Moth."

"But I'm a dancer! How can I fight and defeat anyone? And who is Hawk Moth?"

"He is the maestro of the realm of emotions. He has a rather peculiar sense of humor. He takes the phrase "all the world's a stage" a bit too literally, you see. He has the power to send out black butterflies that create illusions that will turn the world in front of his victims into a scene from a ballet, and if the Etoiles don't realize it in time and take their place to dance their way out of it, his victims will be trapped in his cage of illusions forever."

"That sounds like something out of a children's fairy tale. Why has he never come here before? And why should I believe you?"

"Hawk Moth is not always the same person. His identity comes from the powers of darkness, and the Etoiles must work to expel the darkness from his heart before he spreads it throughout Paris. The dark magic that controls Hawk Moth is wise. It searches for a powerful host, and finds one who has the potential to be a master of manipulation. The last Hawk Moth was in London, a long time ago—but luckily, Ladybug and Chat Noir were able to stop him. It's been years since I felt his dark energy, but I have no doubt that he's here. And now the world needs another Ladybug."

"Ladybug?"

"She is one of the two Etoiles. And you have been chosen to take on her role."

"Me?!"

"Yes."

Marinette stared at her with wide eyes. "I don't think you have the right person for this. My dream is to be an Etoile for the Paris Opera Ballet, to perform for the people of Paris. I'm not a magician, or a psychologist, or a wizard!"

Tikki shook her head.

"Put the earrings on, and you will understand."

Marinette frowned. She wasn't sure what was happening, but something was telling her that Tikki's intentions were pure, so she went with her instincts and put them on.

And nothing happened. She looked to Tikki, who laughed. Clearly, she had been anticipating this reaction.

"Now touch your fingers to them and rub them in a counter-clockwise direction," said Tikki.

Marinette did, and everything around her abruptly went dark, with nothing but a spotlight shining down on her. She realized that she was standing on pointe, wearing a bright crimson tutu in the old-fashioned romantic style, with tulle falling to her knees. Long red ribbons were floating from her bun, and she felt the pressure of a mask upon her face. She reached up to touch it, and her fingers brushed against the intricately beaded edges.

"What's going on?!" she cried. "Tikki, what is this?"

Tikki smiled. "That is your costume, Ladybug. It will change with the story, but when you wear it, you have the power to see through Hawk Moth's illusions, and with the power of these earrings, you can create them as well. But it's important for you to pay attention. Hawk Moth is a master of manipulation, and you'll have to be careful. But don't worry—you won't be alone. You have a partner. His name is Chat Noir. He will always be there by your side whenever you face Hawk Moth."

"Chat Noir? Who is he?"

"That's your first challenge and test. You must figure it out and find each other. Hawk Moth isn't yet ready to find his first victims, but he will be soon. So you must identify and team up with your partner before he does."

"But where will I even start?"

"Follow your instincts. You'll know when you find him. And remember, don't tell anyone else about this. It's important to keep this a secret."

"But how do I—"

"Change back? Rub the earrings clockwise, and you'll return to normal. That's all there is to it."

Tikki waited until Marinette de-transformed before nodding with satisfaction.

"I knew I chose the right girl. You're perfect. Good luck! If you need me, just call for me. I'll be there."

"But I don't have your phone number!"

"And I don't have a phone!" said Tikki cheerfully with a final nod and a wave as she walked back down the hallway and disappeared into the darkness.

Marinette stood there, clutching the earrings, a little shellshocked, and a little disbelieving. She wasn't sure if she was ready to believe that what had just happened was real. But the ruby earrings were still in her palms, pulsing with energy. Whatever had just happened was real, whether she was ready to face it or not.

Alya rushed into the dressing room a few minutes later. "Girl, you were amazing! I told you they would love you!"

Marinette shook her head and tried to focus. "What? Oh, thanks, Alya. I'm glad you enjoyed the performance."

Alya raised an eyebrow as Alix and Aurore entered the dressing room, both carrying an armful of dresses, sporting huge grins on their faces.

"Why do you sound so glum? You just blew everyone away with your performance!"

"I guess I'm a bit tired," said Marinette, looking down. There was no way to explain what had just happened to her.

Alix shook her head. "Nope! I'm not having that. I told Alya that you never go out when you're at school, and she's mad that you lied to her. Anyways, I knew you wouldn't have brought any going-out clothes with you, so Aurore and I snagged a bunch of options from Juleka."

"The costume designer?" asked Marinette, surprised.

"Yup!" said Aurore cheerfully. "She designs club clothes in her spare time. Aren't these great?"

"Hey, nice earrings!" said Alix, noticing the new studs on Marinette's ears. "Are they onyx?"

Marinette stared at her for a moment, confused as to how she could have confused them to be anything but rubies. But just as she was about to respond, she looked in the mirror and realized they had turned black. How was that possible?

Her eyes widened as Tikki's voice suddenly appeared inside her mind. _You're not going crazy, Marinette. They turned black for your protection. They'll only turn red again when you transform._

"Yes, they're onyx," Marinette told her friend. "They were...a gift from a fan."

Alya laughed. "Wow, look at Mademoiselle Etoile! Getting a fanbase already! I'm proud of you, girl."

Marinette eyed one of the dresses, a sleeveless and skin-tight crimson number that she knew would complement her hair and eyes perfectly. She reached out longingly to touch the sleek fabric. It _had_ been a long time since she had gone out with her friends, but she had to do what Tikki had told her and find Chat Noir—even though she had no idea where to start.

"I know what you're thinking," said Alya invitingly. "Give into the temptation, girl. Come out with us. You deserve to celebrate!"

Marinette turned to look at her best friend. "I don't know...I think I might just want to go home tonight."

"We are not taking no for an answer, Mari," said Alix. "You're coming with us to The Glass Slipper tonight, whether you like it or not."

Marinette whipped her head to stare at her petite pink haired friend. "Did you say The Glass Slipper?"

Something about the name felt like it was a lead. Tikki had told her to follow her instincts, and her instincts were honing in on this place. It had to be a sign.

"Obviously," said Aurore. "It just opened a month ago. Don't you remember we were talking about it on the train? But I mean...if you really don't want to go there, we can go somewhere else. As long as you come out with us tonight."

"NO," interjected Alya. "We're going to The Glass Slipper. Period."

"But what if she wants to go somewhere—"

"It's fine," said Marinette quietly, but decisively. "That's where I want to go too."

"Alright!" cheered Alix. "I knew you'd come around!"

Alya nodded approvingly as Alix and Aurore surrounded Marinette and started primping her for the club. She pulled out her phone to text Nino and tell him that phase one had been successful, and that it was now up to him to carry out phase two.

* * *

When Adrien returned to the dressing room, the man from the audience was sitting in his chair, waiting for him with a smirk. As Adrien walked into the room, he stood up and approached him, eyes glittering.

"My name is Plagg," he said. "And I have the role of a lifetime for you. A role that will give you more freedom than you ever could have imagined, and the chance to become the savior of Paris."

Adrien frowned. "That sounds like a Faustian deal. How do I know I can trust you?

Plagg shrugged, graceful and catlike. "You don't. But that's what faith is all about, isn't it?"

"I'm not sure," said Adrien, hesitating.

"Do you have the heart to do it?" said Plagg, his voice low and coaxing.

Something about the look in his eyes compelled Adrien to say yes.

"Terrific," said Plagg, pulling out a black box from his trousers and handing it to Adrien. "Inside this box is a silver ring. Put it on."

Adrien opened the box gingerly and slid the ring onto his right ring finger.

"Nothing's happening," he said.

"Rub the seal counterclockwise," said Plagg.

Adrien did, and suddenly, he found himself wearing a mask, and felt the pressure of something on his head. He reached up and touched what felt like cat ears, and whirled around to look in the mirror.

Along with the ears, his prince costume had been replaced by something else entirely, a black tunic and leggings made of a strange fabric that was practically pulsating with magic. His hands were covered by thick black gloves, made of a material he didn't recognize, and a black mask covered nearly half of his face. A neon green shield made his eyes look almost inhuman.

He stared in awe at his own reflection. "I...look like a cat. A black cat."

Plagg laughed. "That's because you are one. Your name in this form is Chat Noir."

"I don't even recognize myself," said Adrien touching the various parts of his new costume with a tentative wonder.

"And now you have the power to destroy," crowed Plagg.

Adrien frowned, suddenly brought back down to earth. "Destroy what? The silence in my house? Because I haven't had a single conversation with Père ever since Maman died."

Adrien stopped himself. This was the most he had ever said out loud about the problems he had at home, and he was doing it in front of a stranger, no less. Granted, it was a stranger who had just gifted him with some sort of magical powers, but still.

Plagg snorted. "No. You can't destroy problems that have a basis in reality. You have the power to destroy illusions. But you can't do it alone. You need your partner, your counterpoint. Ladybug."

"Ladybug?" Adrien asked, confused.

"Yes. She is the other Etoile—your partner, and you must find her tonight, at The Glass Slipper."

"The dance club? How will I find her there?"

"You ask a lot of questions," said Plagg, sighing.

"Forgive me for wanting to know what I'm signing up for!" responded Adrien indignantly. "You said that I have the chance to become the savior of Paris. What exactly does that mean?"

"Okay, kid. Detransform and sit down and I'll explain what's going on. And before you ask, to do that, all you have to do is rub your ring clockwise."

Adrien did so and sat down in his chair. He listened, enraptured, to the rules of the game, and of the tales of previous Ladybugs and Chat Noirs, and how they had saved every Hawk Moth from the darkness by dancing together. It was an eternal battle, never-ending and manifesting in many different ways through the generations, but with righteousness and love, the side of the light always came out on top.

It felt right. It felt like something it could do. And perhaps in doing so, he would be able to find a way to reconnect with his father again.

And then there was Ladybug.

Even though he hadn't met her yet, Adrien was sure she was going to be amazing, and his eyes sparkled with excitement at the thought of meeting her and dancing together to save Paris. He started fantasizing about what she looked like, and his mind readily supplied a stunning vision of black hair, piercing blue eyes, and clouds of crimson tulle.

"Kid, are you listening?"

Plagg's droll voice and hands waving in his face interrupted his daydream.

"What?"

"I said I have to go. I can hear your friends coming, and I can't have them see me. Remember, all of this needs to stay a secret. But if you need me, call me and I'll be there. Are you sure you've got this?"

"I think so."

"Great. I'll see you soon, kid. And keep that smile on your face. It looks good on you," said Plagg with a wink, before he spun around in a circle and disappeared into thin air.

Adrien blinked in shock at the empty space where the catlike man had been standing just two seconds before, when Nino came bursting in.

"Adrien, my man! You were amazing out there!"

Adrien smiled. "Thanks, buddy. I appreciate that."

"So, I've got a crazy plan for you," said Nino. "Let's go out tonight. I know you're gonna say no, but hear me out. There's a new place called The Glass Slipper—"

"Say no more. I'm in."

"For real? Am I actually talking to Adrien Agreste, he who never goes out to clubs?"

Adrien blushed and raised his arm to rub the back of his neck. "Well, there's a first time for everything, right?"

"Hell yeah, dude! And let me tell you, there will be some gorgeous ladies there."

"Aren't you dating someone named Alya?"

"Yes, and she's the hottest girl on this planet. But who said I was looking for ladies for me? We're talking about you, my friend."

Adrien smiled. The only girl he was hoping to find at the club tonight was Ladybug, but Nino was a great friend, and for his sake, he would meet the poor girl his friend had managed to persuade into joining them at The Glass Slipper.

* * *

The club was dark and crowded, but Marinette was nestled comfortably in between her friends. She held on tightly to Alya's hand as her friend led her through the sea of pulsing bodies.

Her deepest instincts were telling her that Chat Noir was here tonight. She didn't know how she knew, but there had to be a reason why they had come to this club—The Glass Slipper (an odd name for a club, really).

"Les petits rats are going to party it up tonight!" Alix cheered loudly, earning herself a glare from several of the other club-goers. She stuck her tongue out at them and cleared a space for their group, which had expanded to include several other formers students who had discovered they were in town. It was a happy reunion on both sides, and one filled with laughter.

It had been years since all of them had even had time to go out together—being students at the Paris Opera Ballet School meant that it was lights out at 9pm, no questions asked.

But now they were all officially members of the corps de ballet, and they were back in Paris—no more nights in the dorm, no more midnight checkups—they were adults now, with the freedom to do whatever they wanted.

And even though they still didn't have the kind of freedom that regular adults did—the life of a professional ballerina was a strict and disciplined one—these were a few nights where they could do whatever they wanted. Almost.

Marinette soaked in the freedom and let her hips sway and arms move freely as she moved to the beat of the pulsing music, sweat dripping down her skin.

Alix and Aurore had done an amazing job dressing Marinette up, and she knew she looked amazing and she reveled in it—she knew she was here on a mission to find Chat Noir, but that didn't mean she couldn't have a little bit of fun.

She was wearing the killer red dress and her hair was down and she would be damned if she didn't find at least one cute guy to dance with tonight, even if it wasn't Adrien Agreste.

And then she saw him. He was here. And he had _seen her_ —

Adrien's eyes brightened as he recognized the dark haired girl and practically ran up to her. Alya and Nino, who had been standing behind their friends and texting frantically as they tried to figure out a clever way to arrange a meeting, shrugged at each other from a distance. It appeared that their services were no longer necessary.

"Marinette! It's so nice to see you again—I watched your performance tonight, it was absolutely amazing. Congratulations!"

Marinette blushed and nodded. She started to say something in response when she was shoved forward from behind by someone passing through and violently thrust into Adrien's chest.

Instinctively, Adrien's arms went around her protectively, and he glared at the drunken club-goers passing by. He gently moved his arms back and let Marinette gather herself once more.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes—sorry about bumping into you. I—I don't usually come to clubs."

Adrien's arms were still around her, and Marinette acutely felt the pressure of the tips of his fingers against her bare shoulders, forgetting that her own hands were resting against his chest. His hands were strangely cool, even though the temperature was quickly rising as more people piled inside the club.

She realized suddenly that he was much taller than she had realized, and she had to crane her neck upwards to see his face.

"That makes two of us," he said, softly chuckling. "I don't either."

Marinette turned to look at Adrien's shirt, which was much closer to her eye level, and she quickly realized he was wearing formal wear. She tried unsuccessfully to fight back her giggles, and she ran her hands down the shiny black buttons.

"Why are you so dressed up for a club?"

Adrien flushed and smiled bashfully. "My friend Nino didn't exactly give me much time to get ready. He told me we had to get here by 10, since this place closes at midnight. That's why it's called The Glass Slipper. This was the only thing I had to wear other than my costume."

Marinette laughed. "Well, I guess it doesn't matter all that much."

She wrinkled her nose as a cheesy older song started to blast over the speakers. "Who's DJing tonight? They're terrible!"

"They should hire my friend Nino," said Adrien. "He's studying film, but he's an amazing DJ!"

"Nino? Does your friend have a girlfriend named Alya?"

"Yes!" Adrien said with surprise. "How do you know that?"

"That's because she's my best friend," said Marinette, grinning. "Small world, isn't it?"

"It really is," said Adrien, considering this new information as the song changed to a slow love song and the tightly wound groups on the dance floor untangled into pairs.

He looked again at Marinette. "Hey, wanna dance?"

Even in the darkness and the strobe lights, Adrien could tell that the petite girl was flushing pink, but it didn't keep her from saying yes, and he could feel the soft thrum of her racing pulse on her wrist as he led her out onto the floor.

* * *

Two hours passed like the flash of a strobe light, and before they knew it, it was midnight, and it was time for the club to close.

Marinette and Adrien had spent most of the night together, bonding over memories at the school and laughing over how strict life had been as a petit rat, but now, it was time to leave. Even Nino and Alya had left almost half an hour ago, and unwillingly, they parted and agreed to meet up for coffee again in a week.

Adrien called the Gorilla to come pick him up, and Marinette texted Alix and Aurore to find out where they were. Luckily, they had not yet left- they were waiting outside for Marinette to come, and she quickly texted back that she would join them after popping into the ladies room.

As she looked around for the bathroom, Marinette looked back at the empty dance floor and felt disappointed. Her instincts had been wrong. Chat Noir was not here tonight. And yet—she still felt a rush of adrenaline.

She walked into the bathroom and looked into the dirty mirror with a sigh. _Tikki, I need you_.

In a matter of seconds, the tiny woman appeared in a whirl of curls, freckles, and sparkles.

"What is it, Marinette?"

"I thought Chat Noir was going to come here tonight. I mean, I haven't exactly been looking for him for the past few hours...but still, my instincts told me this was the place to be. Was I wrong?"

Tikki shook her head. "Ladybug, trust your gut. You've got the power of luck. If you think he's going to come here tonight, he will."

"But why haven't I seen him yet?"

"Patience is a virtue, you know. Perhaps it wasn't the right moment. How do you feel now?"

Marinette closed her eyes and felt the energy in the air reverberating around her. She gasped as a distinctly feline energy curled its way around her body, like a cat's tail.

"I think he's here. I think he's outside."

"Then transform into Ladybug and meet him. What are you waiting for?"

"What will I say to him?"

"I can't tell you that. Good luck, Marinette," said Tikki with a wink before she disappeared once more.

Adrien leaned against the brick facade of the club with a tired sigh as he waited for the Gorilla to show up with the car.

One of the benefits of being a rich man's son was not having to worry about things like transportation after nights out, but as he watched the various groups of university students wander off into the night, laughing drunkenly as they stumbled down the sidewalk, he thought that perhaps it would be fun to have such an experience at least once.

He closed his eyes and thought about the events of the day.

Plagg had said that Ladybug would be there. But she hadn't come.

"Who's to say she's not in there now?" said a droll voice beside his left ear.

Adrien jumped into the air as he turned to see Plagg standing beside him with a smirk.

"Calm down, kid," said Plagg, rolling his eyes. "Like I said, you've gotta get used to this."

"I thought she'd be here, Plagg," said Adrien. "You said she would be."

"The night's not over yet, Adrien. Why don't you go back in and see if your lady's there now? Maybe she likes her first meetings to be a little bit more private. I know I do."

"Is that possible?"

"You'll never know unless you try, kid," said Plagg with a wink, before he disappeared.

Adrien gulped as he rubbed his ring counter-clockwise, suddenly nervous, realizing that he was completely in over his head. But there was no going back now.

* * *

Chat Noir walked inside. The dance floor was abandoned and dark, save for one bright spotlight shining down on the middle of the floor. And there she was, waiting for him. _His lady_.

She stared intently at him across the floor. "Is that you, Chat Noir?"

"Yes," he said. As he spoke, a second spotlight appeared out of the darkness and shone upon him.

"I'm Ladybug," she said, her voice as soft and musical as a bell. "I guess we're partners then."

As she approached him, he realized her eyes were the clearest shade of cerulean blue he had ever seen, her hair as black as a raven's wing.

She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life.

Facing each other, both found themselves at a loss for words.

"Your eyes are very green," she finally said, after several beats of silence.

"The better to see you with," Chat Noir found himself responding immediately, with a smirk. _Who was he?_

Ladybug blinked with surprise. "So you're a joker, are you? Funny. I wouldn't have pegged you for one. You seemed to be more of an elegant type."

Chat Noir raised an eyebrow. "So cats can't tell jokes? I'll have you know I'm the punniest cat in Paris. My jokes are _purrfect._ "

Ladybug muffled a laugh and tried to look serious. "Well, this is not how I expected this meeting to go. But I'll take it. I look forward to working with you, Chat Noir."

"The pleasure is all mine, my lady," he responded with a bow.

"So now what?" asked Ladybug.

"Well, I don't know about you, but it's almost one in the morning, so I've got to get home. I've got a car waiting for me outside. I can take you home, if you need a ride."

Ladybug's eyes widened as she realized how late it was. "Oh, no, my friends! They must be wondering where I am. Chat Noir, I'm sorry, but I have to go right now. I guess I'll see you later?"

Chat Noir darted an arm out to stop her from leaving. "My lady, wait! Can't you tell me your name?"

"I already told you. I'm Ladybug," she said.

Chat Noir shook his head. "Your real name."

"I'm sorry, but no. We have to keep it a secret, even between ourselves," she said, softly but firmly.

"We'll find each other again when we need to. It was nice meeting you, Chat Noir," she said, gently pulling her arm away and rushing through the door into the night.

Chat Noir stood there, lovestruck and shell shocked, reaching his arm out into the darkness.

* * *

Tikki groaned.

"I told her she was supposed to keep her identity secret from everyone else, not her own partner!"

Plagg snorted. "Are you sure you specified that point?"

Tikki cut her eyes at him. "No. But I thought that was implied."

Plagg shook his head. "If there's one thing I've learned from centuries of dealing with humans, it's that they'll never understand what you're saying the way you intend it to come across. If you want them to know something, you have to tell it to them straight."

"I was perfectly clear!" protested Tikki.

"Well, you could tell him and make it easier for the both of them," said Plagg with a snort.

Tikki sighed. "You know the magic doesn't work that way. They have to decide to reveal their identities to each other on their own."

"It's okay—you know this always happens! One of the two of them always decides they should keep it a secret. But they'll tell each other eventually. They always do."

Tikki looked out onto the abandoned dance floor, eerie in its utter solitude.

"I know. I just hope they figure it out in time."

Plagg placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry. They will."

* * *

Adrien returned to his room in a daze. The events of the night still didn't seem quite real. In between the showcase, meeting Plagg, dancing with Marinette for two hours, and then meeting _her_ , this was going to be a night he was going to remember forever.

He dreamed of only one thing that night: the vision of her stunning cerulean eyes, gazing at him through the darkness as he tossed and turned under the sheets.

Adrien didn't know what was coming, but he knew one thing: whoever the girl under the mask was, he was already in love with her.


	2. Swan Lake

After the first month, Marinette started getting used to having Tikki suddenly appear when she was sitting idly and wishing she had someone to talk to about all of the strange things that had happened, and her mysterious new partner Chat Noir, who she couldn't tell anyone about

However, the first time Tikki suddenly showed up while Marinette was cooking dinner, she screamed.

Tikki had been apologetic and had done her best to explain that she couldn't control it either—the magic was such that now that Marinette had agreed to become Ladybug, Tikki was connected to her emotions, and as her chosen, she was obligated to make sure that her Ladybug was always up to the task emotionally. If there was any significant disturbance in Marinette's mood, she was obligated to immediately appear in front of her and make sure that everything was okay.

"You'll figure out how to tune me out eventually, or to inform me that I don't have to come," she told Marinette. "All of the Ladybugs always do. It's tricky in the beginning though...I have teleported into some—well— _interesting_ , situations, you might say."

"Do I want to know?" pondered Marinette.

"Not unless you're a fan of romance novels," quipped Tikki.

"In that case, no thank you," said Marinette, shaking her head.

Over time, Marinette grew to appreciate the sudden visits from the imp-like woman, and her stories of Ladybugs past. There were many more rules that went along with the role than she ever could have anticipated, and though she didn't tell Tikki, she was concerned about the first time she would have to face Hawk Moth. She wasn't sure she was prepared.

But then again, Tikki surely knew of the unease in her mind. Because it was clear that as long as Marinette was going to wear the mantle of Ladybug, Tikki would be there by her side.

Tikki appeared again the day after the dancers learned that Swan Lake would be the first production, again while Marinette was cooking dinner.

Luckily, this time, Marinette only jumped a little bit.

"Hello again, Tikki. So are you like the little angel on my shoulder now?"

Tikki giggled. "If you want to call me that, sure!"

"You know, you've really got to figure out a less dramatic way of coming here."

"I'm so sorry, Marinette, that's just how the magic works! But I'll try to use less sparkles next time. It's become a bad habit of mine."

Marinette shook her head and laughed. "It's not the sparkles, Tikki. It's the suddenness. But don't worry about it. I'll get used to it eventually. Just give me some time. This is all still very new and strange to me."

Tikki nodded. "You will. My Ladybugs always adapt to their new powers very quickly, and I can just tell that you're very special. Anyway, what's on your mind? You look concerned about something.

"Oh, it's nothing to worry about, really. We just found out that Swan Lake is going to be the first production for the fall season and they're announcing the casting tomorrow."

Tikki frowned. "Swan Lake? You should be careful, in that case."

"Why is that?" replied Marinette, confused.

"Whenever there is a new production, emotions are naturally running high, and because Hawk Moth has returned to Paris, he might just take advantage of them and use the loose emotions to create magical side effects. For regular people, this is not a problem. But now that you're an Etoile, you're going to attract magic. Sometimes that's good. Sometimes it's bad. For you, it'll mostly be harmless, positive magic. But I worry about your partner."

"Chat Noir? Why?"

"He might attract the bad luck directed towards you. You should try to keep an eye out for him, try to keep him safe."

"But I don't even know who he is!"

"I know," sighed Tikki.

"Are you telling me I should have told him who I was?" said Marinette. "But you told me I wasn't supposed to share my identity with anyone!"

"What do you think is the right thing to do?"

Marinette paused and thought about it before coming to her conclusion with a sigh. "I should have told him who I was."

"Yes. You should have. Your identity is supposed to be secret from everyone else, not from your own partner."

"But Tikki, how will I find him?"

Tikki pursed her lips. "I have a feeling he will find you."

"Does that mean you know who he is?"

"Of course."

"So why can't you tell me?"

"I'm sorry, but the magic just doesn't work that way. Once you've made the active decision to hide your identity from someone, only you have the power to reveal yourself. I can't do it for you."

Marinette sighed. "What's the point of having all of these magical powers if I can't do anything useful with them? I can't even find my own partner. This is so silly."

"Well, if you see it that way, yes, it is. But don't worry. You'll figure out the right path soon enough. I believe in you! I chose you for a reason, after all. In fact, Plagg and I are quite sure that Hawk Moth is connected to the Paris Opera Ballet in some way. He is most likely someone in a position of power."

"How do you know that? And who is Plagg?"

"Plagg is Chat Noir's guide, the same way I am yours."

"I see. But how are you so sure that Hawk Moth is connected to the company?"

"It's hard to explain, but it's just an instinct. Plagg and I—we have the power to sense Hawk Moth's energy, but the dark magic prevents us from figuring out who he is. You and Chat Noir must work together to discover his identity and stop him from succumbing to the darkness entirely."

Marinette frowned. This was beginning to get a lot more complicated than she had anticipated it would be. Listening to stories of Ladybugs past was one thing—but when it came to actually working with the realities of juggling two jobs at once, she was concerned about being able to do justice to either.

"I understand, Tikki. But—Swan Lake is going to be taking up a lot of my attention, and I'm not sure I can focus on trying to find out who Hawk Moth is while rehearsals are in full swing. How can I balance the two?"

Tikki shook her head. "Don't worry about focusing on searching for Hawk Moth. You will find each other, one way or another. All I ask is that you pay attention to your surroundings, try to keep an eye for Chat Noir, call me immediately if you notice anything strange. I have a feeling that interesting things are soon to be afoot at the studio."

"Okay. But when I do notice something strange, what do I do?"

"Don't worry, Marinette. Your heart will tell you what to do."

"You're not very good at answering questions, Tikki."

Tikki smiled knowingly. "That's because all of the answers are already inside of you."

"What is that supposed to even mean?"

"Marinette, I know that all of this is strange to you, but just like your instincts helped you figure out that Chat Noir was waiting outside for at The Glass Slipper, they will help you decide what to do when the time comes for you to fight Hawk Moth. To this day, the girl chosen to wear the mantle of Ladybug has never been a fluke. You have been chosen for a reason. Believe in yourself."

Marinette shook her head. "Honestly? It's less about believing in myself and more about how on earth I'm supposed to go about this superhero business without some sort of guidebook. I mean, I know I'm a great dancer, but I would never expect to be given the role of Odette on my first day as a professional at the company. It doesn't make sense. So why am I fighting against this great maestro of emotions, when I haven't even trained for it one day? Are there any magical societies of witches or wizards or something who I can contact for advice?"

"No. Only Plagg and I can recognize Hawk Moth's energy as it shifts over time and place."

"I see. Can I ask you another question?"

"Of course."

"How old are you, anyway? Are you even human? And how did you get involved in all of this?"

"Very old, no, and a story for another time."

"I thought you might say something like that."

* * *

Adrien was video chatting with Nino, trying to take his mind off yet another silent and demoralizing dinner with his father. He was beginning to worry about him; ever since they had begun working on preparations for Swan Lake, Gabriel had become noticeably thinner and more wan, and his temper far shorter than before.

And when he wasn't angry, he was silent, with no way for Adrien to get through. It was making dinners unbearable, and he had taken to video chatting with Nino every night afterward over the past two weeks, talking about everything under the sun except the roof he was sitting under.

But tonight, Nino wasn't having it.

"Come on man, I keep telling you, you need to move out."

"Nino, I can't leave my father alone here!"

"I don't believe that. If you move out, you'll be doing both of you a favor. You'll be out of his hair and you can actually have a life. When was the last time you had a real conversation with him anyway?"

Nino put an arm up before Adrien even opened his mouth. "And no, conversations about dance do not count."

Adrien sighed and hung his head. "I guess you have a point."

He looked up and suddenly saw Plagg appear on his bed, waving at him with a resigned little smile. Adrien quickly realized that his sour mood had called Plagg to him, and gave Nino an extremely unconvincing excuse about having to get a good night's rest because of early rehearsals before hanging up on him, mid-squawk.

"Plagg! What are you doing here? Do you want something to eat?"

Plagg raised an eyebrow. "You know, kid, most Chat Noirs tend to freak out when I suddenly pop up in their rooms. You're the only one who's offered me food each time. I'm not saying that I'm _complaining_ , but it does make me worry about you. Don't you have any friends? Aren't you even a little bit weirded out by this?"

Adrien shrugged. "Should I be?"

Plagg paused. "Well. Tikki tells me that M—I mean, Ladybug, freaks out about her popping in all the time. But you—you are the most enthusiastic Chat Noir I've ever been in charge of. And I'm not sure if that's a good thing."

"You know I'm all in, Plagg. I'm ready to do whatever it takes to save this city with my lady."

"And your father," added Plagg. "I can't read your mind, but I can tell."

Adrien's eyes widened, but he didn't deny it. "Yes."

"It's a noble goal, kid. But I can't make any promises. Just because you're trying to figure out who the maestro of emotions is doesn't mean that you'll be able to get through to your dad. It's not easy to get over the kind of grief that comes along with someone you love. But I'm here for you."

"Thanks, Plagg," said Adrien, nodding gratefully. "Can I ask you a question?"

Plagg snorted. "Has my opinion on whether I want you to ask me a question ever stopped you before?"

"True. I would have asked you anyway. So here's what I want to know. Why did you choose Ladybug and me?"

"You're connected to Hawk Moth in some way. Tikki and I—we can sense it."

"Okay, so we find Hawk Moth. And then what? How do we defeat the darkness?"

"You've got to find his emotional trigger and get him to let go. And before you ask, I don't have the answer to how you're supposed to do that. But I know you've been chosen for a reason. Ladybug and Chat Noir always figure out what they're supposed to do."

Plagg shook his head as Adrien's eyes widened. The boy was clearly coming up with a hundred new questions that he most certainly wouldn't be able to answer, so he put a reassuring arm on the boy's shoulder.

"Anyways, kid, don't let it take over your every day. You're still Adrien Agreste. You've got a day job. I think you should focus on that. And don't sweat it about your dad. He's probably just acting more stressed out than usual because the new season is starting up. I'm sure things will mostly go back to normal soon."

* * *

The next day, official rehearsals for Swan Lake finally began in earnest. Unfortunately, things were off to a rocky start from the very beginning, as Alec Cataldi, the principal dancer who had been cast in the role of Prince Siegfried, had sprained his ankle, and needed to be replaced.

Nadja Chamack, the dancer who had been cast as Odette/Odile, was known for being choosy with her partners. For the past two years, she had refused to partner with anyone other than Alec, and tensions were high now that he was out of the picture.

Still, rumors were flying that the soloist Theo Barbeau was the next obvious choice. He was a rising star, had been with the POB for four years, and quickly rising in popularity among audiences—not to mention that everyone knew he was good friends with Alec, which meant that he would be a good partner for Nadja.

Theo was such a logical choice for the role that everyone assumed he would be the one to get it.

And then Adrien Agreste was chosen instead, while Theo was given a role in the corps de ballet.

Theo took the news gracefully, but whispers of nepotism and favoritism rustled through the studios from dancer to dancer, much to Adrien's chagrin. He was grateful for the chance to dance Prince Siegfried with one of the most accomplished dancers at the Ballet, but he didn't want to do it at the expense of another—or for people to think that he was only getting such an opportunity because he was the son of the Director.

Luckily, Adrien soon discovered that the rumors about Nadja being a diva were unfounded, and that she was actually a warm hearted woman who had quickly realized what was going on as soon as he walked hesitantly into the studio to rehearse with her.

"Adrien. Get that frown off your face. I was the one who personally recommended you for the role of Siegfried."

"But—madame—what about Theo?"

"Theo is an accomplished dancer, but Siegfried needs to be young and guileless, and you're perfect. Don't deny it—I know you're too self aware to not know how you come across on stage. You were born to play this role."

Adrien nodded slowly.

"That is, of course, unless you don't want the role. Say the word and I can tell Nathalie."

"No! No. I'll do it."

Nadja smiled. "Great. I was hoping that's what you'd say. Now let's get started."

* * *

Meanwhile at the rehearsals for the corps de ballet, a different kind of drama was going down.

Marinette, Chloe, Aurore, and another dancer named Mireille Caquet had been chosen for the Dance of the Little Swans, and nobody understood how the casting director could have possibly thought that putting the four of them together was a good idea.

Everyone who knew even a little bit about the four dancers knew that such a combination of girls was destined to be explosive. They might have been four of the best dancers in the corps de ballet, but with the exception of Marinette and Aurore, they hated each other.

Chloe, who had sensed Marinette's fondness for Adrien, had hated her on sight from the moment she had come to feeling was mutual.

As for Aurore, she had disliked Mireille for years, because even though they were the same age, Aurore had been forced to join the Ballet School a year after all of her friends, as Mireille had taken the 6th and last available open spot in the school—even though everyone knew that Aurore was just as capable and talented a dancer.

She had been jealous and resentful of Mireille for years, though Mireille had always been kind and apologetic towards her, and Marinette was worried at how far the rivalry was going to go, especially after a disastrous first rehearsal.

During their break, Marinette tried to talk to her old friend.

"Aurore, we've all landed in the same place. Mireille might have graduated with Chloe and Adrien, but we're still dancing the same role. Isn't that enough?"

"It doesn't matter. I'm never going to be friends with her," said Aurore, scowling.

Marinette frowned. "I'm worried about you. This isn't like you. I know that you've never been fond of Mireille, but aren't you taking this a bit far?"

Aurore whipped her head to look at Marinette. "What about you? Aren't you being a bit of a hypocrite? I see the way you glare at Chloe."

"That's not the same thing. I was never mean to Chloe until she was mean to me."

Of course, there was the fact that they both had feelings for Adrien. But that was irrelevant to the point at hand.

"And I didn't hate Mireille until she took my place at the Ballet School!"

Marinette sighed. It was clear that she wasn't about to get through to her friend, and she needed to take a break from all of the drama.

"Okay, well, I'm going to eat lunch and take a walk in the park. I'll be back in a half hour. Text me if rehearsal starts early, okay?"

Marinette walked out of the studio, totally distracted, and didn't even notice Theo staring at her back as she left.

But even though Marinette didn't notice, Chloe did, and she sauntered up to Theo as soon as Marinette was gone.

"You know, Theo, you should ask her on a date instead of staring like a loser."

Theo perked up. "You really think she'll say yes?"

Chloe rolled her eyes. "How would I know? All I know is that I don't want to see your lovestruck face. It's not like _you're_ Prince Siegfried."

Theo shrunk back at the insult, but thanked her anyway before walking away, starry-eyed. Chloe watched him disappear down the hall and thought it was a good riddance. If Theo started dating Marinette, she would stay out of Adrien's way.

* * *

Marinette sat down on a park bench and sat down with a sigh, quickly gulping down her croissant sandwich. She felt suddenly exhausted, and let her head fall backwards as she looked up at the sky and watched the clouds moving through the trees, wishing that life could be a bit more simple.

She was starting to get more and more concerned about Aurore, and Tikki's words about paying attention kept playing through her head. But even if she was on the right track, Marinette wasn't sure how she could help her friend from falling under the influence of Hawk Moth.

Mostly because she wasn't even sure what that meant yet. She was just going to have to wait for Hawk Moth to come to her.

And then a large white blob blocked Marinette's view of the sky, and she crossed her eyes as she realized that it was Adrien Agreste, holding a quiche and standing behind the bench, peering at her curiously.

She whipped her head back up and turned to look at him, cheeks flaming.

"A—a-adrien! Hi! Come sit beside me!"

She patted the empty space beside her frantically and Adrien smiled at her enthusiasm.

"So, I hear you're in the Dance of the Little Swans. That's great!"

Marinette smiled fondly. She was still getting to know Adrien better, but she had quickly been realizing that one of the nicest things about him was his ability to remember little details about people. He never talked about himself even when he had the ability to, and it was one of the things she liked the most about him.

"Yes, I am, Prince Siegfried!" she said, laughing.

"Ah, yeah...I'm really excited about it," replied Adrien, blushing as he raised an arm to rub the back of his neck.

"How is it working with Nadja? Isn't she nice?"

Adrien nodded. "She's wonderful! I've met her daughter a few times as well. We're friends now, I think. I'm not sure. It's kind of hard to tell with her."

Marinette grinned. "Ah yes, Manon. She's an interesting child. I've babysat her a few times. That's actually how I know Nadja."

"That sounds fun!"

"It can be," said Marinette with a wry grin, as her phone buzzed. It was Alix, who had texted to share the news that the newest set pieces were on stage and to come to the auditorium to look at them instead of going straight to rehearsal.

Marinette shared the news with Adrien and they quickly walked back to the studio and towards the main auditorium.

* * *

As they entered the main auditorium, Adrien turned pale as soon as he saw that the latest set decorations contained a sea of feathers, most of which looked fake, but some of which looked very, very real.

"What's wrong?" Marinette asked.

"I'm allergic to feathers," was what Adrien wanted to say. But when he saw how Louise, the set designer in charge of the production, was flitting around the stage and crowing with delight at how well all of the pieces had all turned out, he said "Nothing."

Instead of being rude about it, Adrien made a mental note to buy several boxes of allergy medicine as soon as he got out of rehearsal. In the meantime, he would just grin and bear it.

Unfortunately, Adrien didn't make it more than five minutes before he started sneezing uncontrollably, just as his father walked into the auditorium. Gabriel stared at his son's swollen red eyes and puffed up face in silence before narrowing his eyes, whirling around and walking back out as he pulled out his phone.

Juleka blanched. "Louise is done for," she said, shaking her head. "I told her not to use the real feathers, but she wouldn't listen. She told me Mr. Agreste would appreciate the artistic merit."

"I never liked Louise anyway," said Chloe. "She always makes the wrong choices. Even I could have told her not to use feathers."

"So why didn't you?" asked Marinette angrily. "If you knew that Adrien was allergic to feathers, why would you even allow him to be put in a position like this?"

Chloe sniffed dismissively and sauntered off the stage, refusing to answer the question.

Marinette shook her head and sighed as she rummaged through her bag for a small packet of tissues. She knew they wouldn't do much to alleviate Adrien's allergy symptoms, but at least she could help stop him from getting snot all over everything.

She helped Adrien shuffle out of the auditorium and handed him the tissues before running off to rehearsal, smiling as he waved gratefully at her and making a note to keep allergy medicine in her purse from here on out. In case a certain someone needed it.

* * *

During the next rehearsal break, Marinette pulled out her phone and opened up the entertainment news app Alya had gotten her hooked on ever since she realized it had the latest news on her favorite rock star, Jagged Stone.

She squealed with excitement at the latest news. Jagged had just released his new album for streaming, which would be available to download for free for the next half hour.

Of course, Marinette was happy to support Jagged and purchased all of his albums, but as a broke dancer, a free album was a surprise blessing she had never expected.

She wanted to share her excitement with someone, but nobody in the entire company seemed to care at all except for Juleka, and even she seemed more interested in Jagged's manager Penny Rolling than in the artist himself when Marinette came up to her.

"Man, she's hot. I really have a thing for girls in pink. Especially when they have short hair," she'd said in her low voice, grabbing Marinette's phone and looking eagerly at the picture attached with the story.

"Yes, but the music—" started Marinette.

"Do you think she's single?" asked Juleka, to nobody in particular.

"I'm pretty sure she's married to her job," said Marinette. "Being a manager for a massive star like Jagged Stone? I doubt she has much time for a personal life."

"Damn," said Juleka. "She's really cute though."

Marinette laughed. "I'm sure you'll find the perfect girl for you someday!"

Juleka's response was interrupted by Nathalie Sancoeur, the managing director, who had just entered the studio with two unfamiliar young women: a petite blonde with a pixie cut and huge blue eyes, dressed from head to toe in lacy pink and pearls, followed by another petite and round girl with brightly colored dreads and a sweet and shy smile.

"Everyone, meet Rose and Mylene, the replacement set designers for this production."

"Well that was fast," whispered Marinette in amazement.

Nathalie turned a critical eye to Juleka, who was staring with wide eyes at the blonde stranger.

"Juleka, I expect you will be able to show these two the ropes around here."

Marinette laughed as Juleka nodded, flushing bright red. "I think your dream girl is here."

"H-hi," she stammered, as the petite blonde came up to her.

"Salut! I'm Rose," she responded with a sweet smile. "It's so lovely to meet you!"

"You must be Mylene, right?" said Marinette, turning to the other girl, who looked tense. "I like your hair! My name is Marinette, by the way. Welcome!"

Mylene visibly relaxed as she nodded. "Thank you. This is my first job outside of my father's theatre company, so I'm a little nervous. I've heard people can be a little mean here."

Marinette smiled. "Well, with the exception of Juleka here, most of us are fairly new here as well. And don't worry! Most of the people here are nice. But if anyone is mean to you, let me know. I don't have patience for bullies."

"Thank you," said Mylene. "That means a lot to me."

"Don't worry about it!" said Marinette. "I've got your back."

* * *

After afternoon rehearsals ended, Marinette waited for the studios to empty out and walked down the hallways of the studios, looking for an empty one to practice in alone.

She knew she was lucky to be chosen to do the Dance of the Little Swans with Aurore, Chloe, and Mireille. As a new dancer in the corps de ballet, such a highlighted role was a privilege.

But she still wanted to dance the role of Odette/Odile.

However, although almost everyone had left, it seemed like several people had also had the same idea as her; as she walked down the hallways, she spotted Aurore and Mireille dancing in separate studios as well. It looked like after hours rehearsal was going to be a common activity for all of them.

Finally, Marinette found an empty studio at the end of the hallway, and practiced Odette's variations for a full hour until her legs couldn't take it anymore.

She sat down on the floor and leaned against the mirror wall, blasting the new Jagged Stone album, eyes closed.

Alya thought Marinette was crazy for finding Jagged Stone's music relaxing, of all things. Marinette didn't know how to explain to her best friend that the strident, bold words and melodies filled her with a kind of energy that classical music failed to do.

It filled Marinette with motivation, and when she tried to explain it to her friend, Alya had shaken her head and said, "I don't think you understand the concept of relaxing."

In the quiet studio, with her eyes closed and the music playing, Marinette completely lost track of time, and didn't even hear the door to the studio opening and the footsteps rushing towards her.

So when she finally opened her eyes again, she was startled to see a pair of green eyes the color of sea foam staring at her eagerly, only a few inches from her face.

"Ahhh!" she screamed, jumping backwards.

"Sorry!" yelled Adrien. "I just heard someone playing the new Jagged Stone album and got really excited about it because I've been dying to talk about it with someone all day."

He stopped short as he realized that Marinette was staring at him, eyes wide.

"I'm so sorry, you probably think I'm a total weirdo, don't you? I'm sorry for freaking you out that way!"

Marinette blinked and shook her head, snapping out of her daze. "No—no! That's not it at all! It's just that I never would have expected _Adrien Agreste_ to be a fan of Jagged Stone, rocker extraordinaire. Most of the other dancers I know are more into top 40 or hip hop, not rock."

"Are you kidding me? Rock N Roll, baby! Jagged Stone is amazing!"

Marinette laughed. "Can you imagine doing Swan Lake to a Jagged Stone soundtrack?"

"Actually, I can," said Adrien in a completely serious deadpan voice. "The American Ballet Theater is doing it right now."

"You've got to be kidding me," replied Marinette.

"You're right, I am," said Adrien with a grin. "Can you imagine?"

"I really can't."

As Marinette turned to the next song on the album, Adrien started bopping his head and arms to the beat, and Marinette realized with amusement that the great Adrien Agreste was actually awkward as hell when it came to any other form of dance other than ballet, and it was the best thing she had ever seen in her life.

She hadn't noticed his inability to lose himself to the rhythm in the club, but it was dark and she had been thinking about finding Chat Noir. And after all, most of the dancing in clubs didn't require any dancing skills. Almost anyone could sway back and forth, arms up in the air.

And now that she saw it, she couldn't stop laughing.

Adrien laughed. "I know. I'm terrible at everything except ballet."

"No, no, that's not why I'm laughing!" protested Marinette, though even she knew she sounded unconvincing.

"It's okay, Mademoiselle," replied Adrien cheekily. "I know where my talents lie."

His eyes widened as Marinette's stomach rumbled. "Sounds like your stomach needs some attention! Would you like a snack from the vending machine?"

"Yes, please," she said, grinning.

Adrien bowed and briskly walked out of the studio, leaving the door open. Marinette paced around the studio while she waited, twirling around and singing her favorite song on the album, a slow ballad called Lady Luck. Perhaps it was a bit narcissistic of her to gravitate towards that song, but she had found herself gravitating towards red and black and ladybug themed merchandise as of late. She simply couldn't help herself.

Lost in her thoughts, Marinette didn't even notice Theo coming in, and jumped when he tapped her on the shoulder.

"Oh! Theo! What are you doing here? I mean—isn't it kind of late for you to be here?"

Theo looked hesitant. "I—I actually wanted to ask you something and I saw you hadn't left yet, so I thought I'd wait. And then I heard you singing."

Marinette blushed. "Oh, I see. Um, so...what was it that you wanted to ask me?"

"Well...I was wondering...would you like to go to dinner with me sometime?"

Adrien walked back into the studio with a bag of cookies at this very moment, and immediately noticed how uncomfortable Marinette looked. He looked back and forth between the two with concern. Theo had a lot of influence in the theater, and Adrien wasn't interested in antagonizing him, and it was clear that Marinette felt the same way, even though the look on her face suggested that she wasn't interested in Theo at all.

"Can I think about it?" She finally managed to say before lapsing into awkward silence.

"Oh, um, sure," said Theo. "Take your time."

"Merci, Theo," she said quickly before rushing out of the room and fleeing right past Adrien and the snacks in his hand without even seeing him.

Theo realized that Adrien was standing there and turned to him with a mildly irritated look.

"Can I help you, Monsieur Agreste?"

Adrien raised an eyebrow at the sarcastically formal greeting, but decided to blow past it. It wasn't the right time to confront Theo about their unnecessary rivalry. He had to help Marinette somehow.

So he said the first thing that popped into his mind.

"Well, actually, Theo, I wanted to keep this on the downlow…but Marinette and I kind of have a thing going on. We haven't told anyone, but we're exclusive."

Theo looked skeptically at Adrien. "Is that so? Why didn't Marinette say she was seeing someone then?"

"Well, uh...she probably didn't want to hurt your feelings, you know?"

"I see."

Adrien was beginning to feel uncomfortable at Theo's irritated stare, and turned to look out the door so he wouldn't have to meet his gaze. An idea struck him as he spotted Mireille walking alone down the hallway towards the entrance, and he remembered the starry-eyed way she had been looking at Theo during one of the earlier group rehearsals.

"Can I give you a little tip though? I think Mireille might have a thing for you. You should ask her out instead."

With that, Adrien retreated from the studio, leaving Theo standing there alone.

As he walked away, Theo frowned, and the lights flickered.

* * *

Hawk Moth smiled.

Tensions were rising in the studio. It was time to strike.

He walked over to his desk and looked down at the large butterfly shaped wooden box sitting on it, painted a royal shade of purple and practically pulsing with magic. It was finally ready to be opened.

Hawk Moth opened the latch and breathed in the rush of dark energy that flew from the depths of the box as he lifted the heavy lid. He looked at the various glass bottles nestled among the purple silk that lined the edges and pulled out a slender bottle filled with a neon green vapor, labeled jealousy.

He pulled out the cork and watched with satisfaction as the vapor escaped immediately, shooting through the open window of his office and into the darkness.

* * *

Marinette ran straight to the entrance of the studio and out the door, before she stopped, collapsing onto one of the benches out front to catch her breath.

Mireille, who was sitting on one of the other benches and waiting for her mother to come pick her up, looked at her with concern.

"Marinette, are you okay?"

Marinette shook her head. "I'm fine, I promise. I'm just a little out of sorts."

"What happened? Is there anything I can do to help?"

"I don't think so. You see—Theo just asked me out on a date."

"Oh, I see," said Mireille, quietly.

Lost in her own thoughts, Marinette didn't even register the hurt tones in her friend's voice.

"And the thing is, I'm not interested at all, but I also don't want to hurt his feelings, so I asked him if I could have some time to think about it."

"Will you tell him no eventually?" asked Mireille.

Marinette shrugged. "I guess so. But not tonight."

Feeling back to normal, she stood up. "Well, I should get home and eat dinner. I'll see you tomorrow, Mireille."

"Bye," said Mireille, waving halfheartedly at Marinette's quickly retreating back with a sigh.

Aurore, who had just come out of the studio, observed the exchange in silence before sitting down on the bench Marinette had just vacated.

"Feeling jealous, are we?" she said with a savage smirk at Mireille's downcast expression. "Maybe now you can understand how I feel. Though I don't know if I actually believe that you're in love with Theo. Something tells me that you're just interested in becoming the next Nadja and Alec. But let me tell you, Mireille, I'm not going to let that happen."

Mireille cast hurt eyes at Aurore. "Not everything is a competition, Aurore."

"It's easy to say that when you get everything you want, Mireille Caquet."

"I'm sorry you feel that way," replied Mireille sadly as her mother pulled up in her car. "I guess I'll see you at rehearsal tomorrow?" she added hesitantly as she opened the door to get in. She hung her head as Aurore pointedly ignored her farewell, looking determinedly in the other direction.

As the car drove away, a formless mass of green energy started seeping from Aurore's feet and pooling underneath the bench, though she saw nothing.

* * *

Theo leaned against the mirror wall and sighed. He was disappointed that Marinette hadn't said yes to his dinner invitation, but he had held out a bit of hope that she would eventually come around to it. But now that he knew that Adrien Agreste was dating her, he knew he didn't even have a bit of a chance.

It was killing him a little bit inside.

It was true that he had only found the courage to ask Marinette on a dinner date because Chloe Bourgeois had suggested it, but he was beginning to regret ever having tried.

If only Adrien Agreste wasn't in the way. That boy was ruining everything; from taking the roles he had worked so hard to earn to destroying his chance at romance with Marinette.

And then Adrien had actually had the audacity to suggest that Theo should take Mireille Caquet on a date. Mireille was beautiful, no doubt, but she was the girl who everyone knew was off limits, who was most likely going to marry some upper class snob her parents knew.

Even thinking about asking _her_ on a date seemed ridiculous.

Theo sighed. He wanted to get rid of Adrien. Or at least, get him out of the way.

And then he suddenly found himself holding a ball of green energy, and a resonant voice inside his head.

 _Theo_ , _I understand your jealousy. How terrible to play second fiddle to a man who isn't even half as worthy as you. But if you can contain your jealousy in this ball of energy I have sent you, I can help you._

"Who are you?"

 _My name is Hawk Moth. You can think of me as a magician of sorts, one with powers over emotions. You would like to get Adrien out of your way, wouldn't you?_

"More than anything."

 _Well then, let the jealousy seep out of you, and soon he will be out of your way._

Theo nodded, and closed his eyes as he let himself be consumed by the jealousy he had kept clenched in his stomach.

The energy shifted into a cat-like form, its tail curling around Theo's wrist.

 _Now let it go_.

"Where will it go?"

 _That is not your concern, Prince Siegfried. You must find your princess._

"What? My name is Theo—"

 _You must find Odette, Prince Siegfried. Leave Adrien Agreste to me. Now go!_

Theo's eyes went glassy as a rush of purple magic swept over him and transformed his clothing into the prince's costume and the little green cat leapt from his arms and into the darkened hallway.

"I must find Odette," he repeated, as the studio around him transformed into a ballroom.

* * *

Aurore was angrily stomping home, thinking of Mireille's stupid delicate face and her stupid high voice and how stupid it was that she was going to have to spend the next three weeks holding her hands and dancing in sync with her.

Even having a high profile role like the Dance of the Little Swans wasn't enough to make up for having to spend time with such a loathsome girl. She had always gotten everything she wanted, and now she was even trying to form a relationship with one of the other rising stars in order to gain popularity.

Aurore thought it was disgusting.

She was so angry that she had to stop on the bridge where she was crossing the Seine to gather herself, and she tried to take deep breaths as she looked down at the water.

As she gazed at her reflection, Aurore suddenly realized that she was surrounded by waves of dark green energy, curiously formed into the shape of swans.

She held back a scream as a mysterious voice filled her mind, and a vision of a masked man wearing a suit of silver and violet appeared before her eyes.

 _Hello, Aurore_ , said the resonant voice. _Wouldn't you like to show that Mireille what you're made of? Wouldn't you like to put her in her place_? _You are far more talented and beautiful than she is._

Aurore nodded slowly. "Yes. I am."

 _Good. That's what I like to hear._

She narrowed her eyes. "But who are you? How do you know this?"

 _Some call me Hawk Moth, but you can call me Von Rothbart._

"Von Rothbart? Like—"

 _Yes, my Odile. Now you must stop Odette._

"But Mireille—"

 _Prince Siegfried is waiting for her in the studio. If you want to stop her, you must join him._

Aurore gasped as the green swans rushed towards her and enveloped her in a cloud of magic.

She emerged from the cloud looking like a queen, dressed from head to toe in a feathery black tutu, her long blonde hair pulled back in in a sleek bun, her eyes glittering with malice.

 _Are you ready to go to Prince Siegfried, Odile? Can you stop Odette in her tracks?_

She nodded. "With pleasure."

* * *

Adrien was taking another walk in the neighborhood surrounding the studios to clear his head before evening rehearsal with Nadja. He was feeling a little guilty about lying to Theo about dating Marinette, but he had seen the panicked look in her eyes, and it was the only thing he had been able to think of in the moment.

In retrospect, it hadn't been the smartest idea, but hindsight was always 20/20.

Halfway through the walk, Plagg appeared beside him.

"That was definitely dumb of you, kid," said Plagg. "But I don't blame you. I might have done the same thing."

"What should I tell her tomorrow? What if she doesn't forgive me?"

"I think you worry too much, kid," replied Plagg. "I think she'll be fine. Trust me."

His eyes widened as a little green cat approached Adrien and looked at him with appealing eyes, and Adrien leaned down to stroke it.

Plagg cried, "Kid, no! Don't touch that thing!"

But it was too late, and the little green cat immediately disappeared as Adrien realized he was on all fours, and the world seemed a lot bigger than before. He turned to look at his reflection in the shop window he had been standing beside, and Adrien realized to his shock that he had been turned into a black cat, his silver ring now a collar around his neck.

Plagg groaned. "I TOLD YOU NOT TO TOUCH IT. WHY DID YOU NOT LISTEN?"

 _What just happened?_ thought Adrien, hoping that Plagg could hear what he was thinking.

"That green cat was a spirit of jealousy sent by Hawk Moth. You've pissed someone off and they wanted to get rid of you, and Hawk Moth got to them. And now you're only going to go back to normal at midnight, for one hour. Like that swan girl in the ballet you're performing in."

 _How do you know that?_

"How do I know that? Kid, I am as old as time. I've seen this happen hundreds of times. I should have known it would happen with you. Especially with you. You've taken being a curious cat to a whole new level, and I don't know what to do with you."

Plagg pressed his palm against his face as another being appeared, an elf-like woman with masses of auburn curls and bright obsidian eyes. She looked like a fairy, and yet Adrien had the feeling she could break someone in half if she wanted to. She clucked her tongue as she looked down at Adrien and sighed.

"Oh dear. This certainly complicates things."

Plagg groaned. "You're telling me. How is he supposed to fight Hawk Moth with Ladybug now?"

"Well. We could—" said Tikki before trailing off.

Plagg's eyes widened as he realized what Tikki was trying to suggest. "I don't know—"

"It's the best option."

"But you know how they both feel—and this one's as dense as a box of rocks."

"I know. But still."

 _Can someone please explain what's going on?_ Adrien thought furiously at Plagg, who laughed.

"Hold on, kid. Tikki's taking you on a little field trip."

 _What is that supposed to mean?_

"You'll see. Don't worry. I'll be there with you soon and explain everything else that you need to do," said Plagg before nodding and disappearing.

Tikki smiled as she suddenly produced a basket and a red and black polka dotted ribbon out of nowhere, which she tied around Adrien's neck before placing him in the basket with a little note.

She snapped her fingers and suddenly they were standing in front of an unfamiliar apartment with a hand-painted pink and white door sign that read MARINETTE DUPAIN-CHENG.

 _Why did you bring me to Marinette's apartment?_ thought Adrien, confused.

"Because she's going to take good care of you, little one," said Tikki with a wink before ringing the doorbell and disappearing.

* * *

Marinette opened the door to see a small black cat with a spotted red and black bow sitting in a basket sitting on her doorstop.

"Oh, what a precious little _chaton_!" she squealed as he looked right into her eyes and mewed loudly. She leaned down to pick him and read the note tucked into the basket, which said the cat was from an ardent admirer of her dancing.

Though Marinette was mildly concerned for a moment that an admirer knew her address, it occurred to her that the little cat was probably a secret gift from Alya or her parents, who knew she loved surprise gifts.

She smiled at the adorable little cat and scratched his chin before taking him inside and placing him back on the ground.

"Wait here, kitty! I'll go to the store and get some cat food. I'm sure you must be hungry! Feel free to explore. Not that there's much to see," she added with a laugh before she grabbed her purse and shut the door.

* * *

As Adrien waited for her to return, he wandered around the apartment, curious why Plagg and Tikki had taken him to Marinette's apartment, of all places. Did they know her? Was she a random choice? Or was it because they'd noticed that she had gotten lunch with her today?

It was a mystery.

Marinette's apartment smelled like cinnamon and sugar, and it was meticulously organized. She had color coded her schedule and put it on the wall, and when Adrien wandered into her bedroom, he noticed that she had several posters of Jagged Stone all over her bedroom walls.

There was another thing he noticed. Although Marinette had put photographs of her family and pictures of her and Alya all over the apartment, there were none of her with any boyfriends.

Adrien didn't know why this particular piece of information pleased him so much, but it did.

* * *

Marinette returned to the apartment about two hours later, having made a detour for a quick coffee with Alya, who had been in the area and wanted to know if she was free.

She called out for the little cat. "Mon minou, where are you? I have food for you!"

He came running and she patted him fondly on the head. "You know, your eyes remind me of someone I know," she said. "His name is Adrien, and you both have the most beautiful green eyes," she said, smiling. "Do you mind I call you that?"

He purred, and she took it as a yes.

She took a china bowl out of her cabinets and filled it with the food that she had bought for him, and even though he sniffed at it skeptically for a few minutes, he eventually ate it.

"Good kitty!" said Marinette after she saw that the bowl was empty, pleased that he had liked it.

She picked him up and and placed him beside her on her couch and turned on the tv, flipping channels mindlessly and absently stroking his head before dozing off, Adrien curled beside her.

She was suddenly woken up by the sharp ring of her phone, and she scrambled to pick it up.

It was Nadja, wanting to know if she had seen Adrien, as he had missed all of the evening rehearsals and wasn't answering his phone. The last time anyone had seen him was with Marinette, and now that it was getting quite late, people were getting worried, and about to call the police.

Marinette told Nadja that she hadn't seen Adrien since she had left the studio in the afternoon, and listened in confusion as the other dancer told her about the other strange things that were happening, including a hallway that had gone completely dark, even though all of the switches were still on.

After hanging up, she looked in a panic at the cat, who also seemed to have a worried expression on his face.

"My friend is missing, kitty cat. The one who shares a name with you. And it looks like there are strange things happening at the studio, too. What should I do? I need to help somehow."

She walked to the bathroom to splash cold water on her face, her mind racing.

Feeling Marinette's unease, Tikki appeared, and wrapped her in a reassuring hug.

"Marinette, I know you're worried, but the best thing you can do right now is to get some sleep. You need your energy."

"But Adrien is missing!" cried Marinette. "Can't I do anything as Ladybug to help find him?"

Tikki sighed, wishing she could openly tell her charge that Adrien was safe and sound and sitting right in front of her in the apartment, in cat form.

As she wasn't able to do that, she said what she could.

"I can sense Adrien's energy. And he's fine. Does that make you feel at least a little better?"

Marinette frowned. "A little bit. But I still want to find him."

"I know. And you can. Tomorrow."

"What if something happens to him before then?"

"He'll be fine, Marinette. I can promise you that much."

Marinette sighed as Tikki disappeared again in a cloud of magic. "I guess I should brush my teeth and head to bed. Even though I'm not sure I'll even be able to sleep."

She brushed her teeth and took out her hair ties and looked at herself in the mirror with a sigh before walking out of the bathroom. Her cat was waiting right by the door, staring up at her with those beautiful green eyes, tail swishing.

Marinette smiled and kneeled down to stroke his head. "Think you can help me fall asleep, kitty? I think you're the only one who can help me calm my mind."

She picked him up and turned off the lights before carrying him to the bed, quickly falling asleep against his warm, soft fur.

* * *

As soon as Marinette had fallen into a deep sleep, Adrien quietly slipped away from her arms and onto the windowsill, waiting for Plagg to arrive.

He appeared almost immediately, looking far more serious than Adrien had ever seen him.

 _What's going on, Plagg? How can I become human again?_

Plagg sighed. "Well, kid, I know this isn't the right time, but I've gotta tell you something before I get to that. Hawk Moth has finally struck. All of that weird stuff that Nadja was telling Marinette on the phone? It's him. As soon as the clock strikes midnight and you turn human again, you've got to transform into Chat Noir immediately and get to the theater. He has two victims who you have to rescue."

 _What about Ladybug? Does she know that Hawk Moth has struck?_

Plagg resisted the urge to look backwards at Marinette on the bed.

"You can contact her directly by touching the center of your ring. It will send her a signal."

 _And…_

"The solution to your cat problem? It's pretty standard stuff. Your true love has to kiss you at some point in the one hour you will be human."

 _But I don't even know if Ladybug feels the same way about me!_

"You know, kid, you've gone from 0 to 100 real fast. You've only met the girl twice. But you humans have always been a little overemotional. Anyway, she still has to kiss you in order to release you from this state."

 _I don't want to force her to do anything she doesn't want to do. I'd rather deal with being a cat than make her uncomfortable._

"And I get that...but that's just not realistic, kid. Talk to her about it. Maybe she'll be more open to the idea of kissing you than you think. It's your only option. So that's two things you have to do tonight: rescue Hawk Moth's victims, and get your kiss. Are you up to it?"

 _Well, I don't have much of a choice, do I?_

"Not if you want to fulfill your duty to this city," said Plagg. "Good luck. I'm there if you need me."

He disappeared, and Adrien sat by the window, waiting impatiently for midnight and worrying what Hawk Moth had done to the theater, in between thinking about Marinette, and deciding to send her a kitten after he returned to human form, because she had done such a lovely job taking care of him. Tikki had been right. She was a wonderful pet owner.

He tried not to think about how much he had enjoyed the cat food she had purchased for him.

Finally, the clock struck midnight, and soon as the moonbeams touched Adrien's fur, he returned back to normal, stumbling to the floor as he readjusted to being human again. Breathless from the sudden change, he scrambled out of the bedroom on all fours before Marinette could wake up and to the bathroom.

He quickly transformed into Chat Noir and pushed up the small window, squeezing through the slit and leaping toward the rehearsal studios.

Chat Noir stopped at the entrance, shocked by what he saw. Standing where the studios were supposed to be was a huge forest with trees that seemed to reach up to the sky, with a large purple butterfly glowing in the darkness above.

He knew it was an illusion, but he marvelled at how real it looked.

But he wouldn't be able to destroy it alone. He needed his lady.

Chat Noir closed his eyes and tapped his ring, hoping that Ladybug would get his message and come there soon.

* * *

In her bed, Marinette sat bolt upright as her earrings burned like fire.

Instinctively, she rubbed them counter clockwise and transformed into Ladybug, flying out her bedroom window without a thought.

She didn't know what was happening, but she knew her partner needed her, and she was going to get there as quickly as possible.

* * *

Tikki grinned as she watched Ladybug fly across the streets of Paris towards the theater.

"Atta girl! I didn't even have to teach her that was Chat Noir trying to reach out to her! I think that's a good sign. Those two really are meant for each other."

Plagg smirked. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves here just yet. They haven't even revealed their identities to each other. I'm still skeptical."

* * *

"My lady!" called Chat Noir with relief as Ladybug flew down and landed beside him. She had received his message after all.

"Chat Noir, what's wrong?" She stared at the enormous forest in front of them, where the studios were supposed to be. "What's going on here?"

"I need your help. I've got a bit of a problem. You see, I've been turned into a cat. Also, I don't think I have to tell you that Hawk Moth has finally arrived on the scene."

Ladybug raised an eyebrow. "I know you've been turned into a cat. Just like I've been turned into a Ladybug. Come on Chat Noir, be serious. We need to figure out what to do about this."

"I wish I was joking, my lady, but I'm telling you the truth. Hawk Moth got to me, and I only regain my human form between midnight and 1 am, and that's also the only time I can transform into Chat Noir."

"What, like Odette?" quipped Ladybug.

"Exactly like Odette."

"How is that even possible? And it's already a quarter past midnight! Are you telling me you're going to turn into a cat again in 45 minutes?"

"Yes, unless you're willing to help me with the solution."

"Of course I'm willing to help! You're my partner! We've got to figure this out. I can't fight Hawk Moth if my partner is actually on all fours. How do you think it happened?"

"Plagg said it was because of jealousy. And the solution is—"

"Wait. You said it was because of jealousy? Perhaps it's connected to what's going on inside. Actually, I'm sure it is."

"How do you know?"

"It's a gut instinct. Tikki told me that I should watch out for you, since you might attract some of the bad luck magic that's out there, since you're a black cat. Have you annoyed anyone lately or made them jealous?"

Chat Noir flushed. "Well, yes…I told a guy at work I was dating someone he had just asked out because she was clearly uncomfortable with his attention."

Ladybug raised an eyebrow. "And are you sure she's okay with that?"

Chat Noir looked bashful. "I didn't really think through the details…it was just that after I did it, I remember seeing his face. He was uncomfortable and jealous."

"Okay, so that's a good lead. Where do you work?"

Chat Noir paused. "Are you sure you want to know?"

"Yes. It'll give us a lead," she said. _And maybe I can figure out who you are_ , she thought.

"I'm a dancer here, at the Paris Opera Ballet."

Marinette had a sharp intake of breath. "The Paris Opera Ballet?!"

"What, do you work here too?"

"Yes."

Marinette's mind was racing. What if Chat Noir was someone she didn't like—what if he was _Theo_? She was beginning to reconsider telling him who she was. She hadn't thought about the possibility that she wouldn't like the answer.

Chat Noir saw her stricken expression. "If you really don't want to know, I won't tell you."

"Thanks, Chat Noir. I appreciate that," she said.

"But the man I angered...his name is Theo Barbeau. Plagg said that Hawk Moth has two victims, and I'm pretty sure he's one of the people inside. But I don't know who the other person could be."

 _Oh, thank god,_ thought Ladybug. _Theo is not Chat Noir_.

"Well, if jealousy is the emotion that Hawk Moth has focused in on, I have an idea who his other victim could be," she said.

"Who?"

"Something's telling me it's Aurore Beauréal."

"The corp de ballet dancer?"

"Yes."

* * *

"That girl gets concerned over the silliest things," said Plagg with a sigh. "They could have revealed their identities to each other right now!"

"Patience. They'll get there," said Tikki.

"Not quick enough, if you ask me," said Plagg.

* * *

"Okay, so we have to save Aurore and Theo. But we have to get inside first," said Chat Noir.

"You have the power to destroy illusions, right?"

"Yes. With a little dance move called Cataclysm. I need your help for that move though, my lady."

"So—first things first, why don't we use that to destroy this magical forest and find the actual entrance to the building again?"

"It would be my pleasure."

Chat Noir extended an arm and Ladybug spun into it, and they leaped into the trees. He whirled about and swept his hands over the tree trunks, melting them away and leaving the exterior of the studios looking as normal and untouched as before.

"Great job, _chaton_!" cheered Ladybug, pushing open the main door. She stopped mid-cheer as she realized the illusion was still active inside, with tree branches and leaves choking the entire hallway.

"Um, Chat Noir? I think we need to do an encore performance."

"Oh no! Are you telling me my first Cataclysm was _pointeless?_ "

"Chat Noir. No."

He grinned and reached his arm out. "Let's do it again!"

They leaped and spun through the hallways, quickly restoring the building to normal, when they heard the faint strains of Tchaikovsky coming from the opposite end of the building.

They looked at each other and nodded as they ran down the hallway, following the sound as it got louder and louder, until they found the last remaining studio that they had not yet touched, which had been covered with an illusion that made it appear to be an ornate ballroom that looked like it belonged in a place like Versailles, rather than a rehearsal studio.

Standing in the middle and surrounded by clouds of green vapor was Aurore, who was slowly turning around in an endless series of fouettes, with a sharp and cruel expression on her face. Watching her with a dazed and fascinated expression was Theo, who had eyes only for her. Both seemed lost in a dream, unaware of their surroundings.

"Aurore!" cried Ladybug.

"Theo," muttered Chat Noir.

Ladybug turned to Chat Noir. "This is just like what Tikki told me might happen. They're trapped in a realm of illusions, and we've got to get them out of it."

"How do we rescue them? I don't think I can use Cataclysm for this."

"We have to snap them out of it."

"How do we do that?"

"We need to distract them to get their attention. It looks like Hawk Moth has trapped them into thinking they're in Swan Lake, so we have to distract them using the story."

"You're right," said Chat Noir. "It looks like Aurore thinks she's Odile, so the best thing for you to do is to make her think you're Odette."

"Exactly. An Odette that looks like Mireille, her worst enemy."

Ladybug nodded at Chat Noir. "I think it's time to use the Lucky Charm Adagio."

Chat Noir bowed and led her through the movements, and in a leap, a turn, and a burst of magic, Ladybug suddenly looked like Mireille, and she twirled towards Aurore, stopping in front of her with a smirk.

"Hello, Aurore. Recognize me?"

Aurore stopped spinning and stared at her. "Odette?"

"Someone like that."

"You'll never get Prince Siegfried now, Odette. He's mine."

Ladybug laughed. "Trust me, I'm not interested in your Prince Siegfried. I've got my own prince."

"Wait. You're not Odette," said Aurore, eyes narrowing. "You're _Mireille Caquet_. Why are you here?! I can't stand the sight of your face!"

"To help you snap out of it!" said Ladybug. "You're not Odile. You're Aurore Beauréal, one of the best dancers in the corps de ballet."

She turned to Theo, who was standing like a statue. "And you! Loverboy! What are you even doing here? Shouldn't you go home?"

Aurore shook her head. "You need to leave, Mireille. You don't belong here."

Theo nodded in agreement.

Ladybug felt like screaming as the two dancers turned their backs to her and started spinning around again as though she wasn't there.

"Why can't I get through to you?" she shouted.

Chat Noir tapped her shoulder. "My lady, can I make a suggestion?"

She turned to look at him. "What is it?"

"I think this green vapor is confusing them. We need to get them out of this studio to snap them out of it."

"But they won't move! And do you see how they're ignoring me?"

"Let's use the Lucky Charm Adagio again to create another illusion. But this time, make me look like Theo, and you can make yourself look like Aurore. I'll go up to her and you go up to him and we'll trick them into leaving the studio. How does that sound?"

Ladybug nodded. "It's worth a try."

She leaped into Chat Noir's arms and activated the charm, and they quietly approached Aurore and Theo before leaping in front of them and grabbing onto their waists. Confused but compliant, Aurore and Theo allowed Ladybug and Chat Noir to lead them out of the room.

As soon as they were out, Ladybug slammed the door to the studio, and watched with bated breath as Aurore and Theo breathed in fresh air.

Their foggy expressions cleared up, replaced by disorientation, but clarity. They stared in confusion at Ladybug and Chat Noir, who quickly realized that they were still wearing the illusions that made them look like Aurore and Theo.

"Time for a second encore, mon chaton," said Ladybug. "Let's put things back to the way they were."

"That's the best idea you've had all night, my lady," said Chat Noir with a smile.

Aurore and Theo watched in amazement as they watched the dynamic dancing duo drop their disguise and restore the studio to normal with a rush of magic.

"Who are you?" whispered Theo. "And what happened?"

"She's Ladybug," said Chat Noir with a grin.

"He's Chat Noir," added Ladybug. "And together, we're the Etoiles."

Aurore stared at Ladybug in wonder. "Etoiles? Are you a part of the Paris Opera Ballet?"

Ladybug smiled. "We are the protectors of Paris. So in a way, yes. But we are a part of everything. We're here to rescue citizens like the two of you from Hawk Moth. He's a villain that preys on people's emotions when they're vulnerable, so you need to be careful from here on out."

"You were his first victims, but he's sure to target more people," added Chat Noir. "So please tell everyone you know to stay aware, and to try and stay in control of their emotions."

Aurore nodded. "Well...I don't know what just happened tonight, but thank you. I'll...I'll try to keep that in mind."

* * *

Ladybug led the two dancers back outside as Chat Noir called a cab to take them home, which arrived surprisingly quickly.

As Ladybug and Chat Noir waved them off, Chat Noir tapped her shoulder.

"My lady…about what I mentioned earlier…we only have ten minutes before I turn back into an actual cat."

"Oh my god, your cat problem—I didn't even let you tell me what the solution was."

"About that…"

"What is it?"

"The spell can only be broken by true love's kiss."

Ladybug snorted. "It's too bad you're not my true love, then, isn't it?"

Chat Noir sobered up. "No, but seriously. Plagg told me that the spell can only be broken by someone I lo—care about. And you're the only person who I can tell about any of this. I don't know you that well yet, but I know I care about you. So—would you be willing to kiss me, my lady? I know it's a lot to ask, but I don't know what else to do."

Ladybug frowned. " _Minou_ —you're joking, right?"

"For once, I'm not. But I also don't want you to do something you don't want to do. So I have an idea."

"What is it?"

"We can create illusions to make each other look like other people. Why don't you use Lucky Charm to make me look like someone you would actually want to kiss?"

"Are you okay with that?"

"If it's the only way that we can solve my problem and make you comfortable with this, then yes. I'm fine with that."

"Chat Noir, you're a really good person. You know that, right?"

"I know," he said, as Ladybug closed her eyes and spun around in a pirouette in front of him, thinking hard about Adrien.

When she opened her eyes, she gasped as she saw Adrien standing in front of her, and reached up tentatively to kiss him on the lips.

Though she knew she was kissing Chat Noir and not Adrien, she lost herself for a moment in the soft and tender warmth of his lips, and pressed a little harder than she had meant to.

As she pulled back, he reached an arm out to her to start the movement to break the illusion, and they danced together in a daze as the illusion of Adrien fell and he turned back into Chat Noir.

Afterward, they stood together in silence, even though they both knew that time was running out.

"My lady, can I ask you a question? You don't have to answer if you feel uncomfortable."

Ladybug turned to him with a blush. "What is it?"

"Who did I turn into, when you placed the illusion over me?"

Ladybug looked down. She knew Chat Noir was a good person, and she was going to share her identity with him someday soon, but she still wasn't ready to share that kind of personal information with him, even though she was fairly sure he wouldn't tell anyone. It was still a risk, until she knew who he really was.

"Someone you might know. And someone you might not," she said. "But I hope I helped. See you later, Chat Noir, " she added as she leapt away into the darkness, mere minutes before the clock struck one.

* * *

Plagg appeared in front of Chat Noir as soon as she disappeared.

"Kid, I don't know if she broke the spell or not, but even if she did, the antidote won't work until sunrise. And since you're gonna turn back into a cat at least one more time tonight, you should go back to that girl Marinette's apartment before she wakes up and sees that her kitten is missing. You don't want that to happen, do you? She's already worried enough as it is that her friend is missing."

Chat Noir's eyes widened. "You're right. I need to get back right now."

Tikki suddenly appeared and grabbed his arm. "Wait. Adrien, before you go, I want to help you with something. I might not be able to tell you who Ladybug is, but I am going to help you deal with your little disappearing problem."

"What do you mean?"

"Everyone thinks you've gone missing, but I've got a few illusory powers. One of the perks that come along with being Ladybug's guide. When everyone that knows you wakes up, they're going to forget that you went missing, and instead, they're going to think that you told them you were going to spend the night at your friend Nino's house. Nino will believe this as well, and you must go along with it, or the entire illusion will drop. Is that clear?"

Chat Noir nodded. "Thank you, Tikki. I appreciate the help, but if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to Marinette's apartment before she wakes up in the middle of the night and realizes that I'm gone."

As he rushed away, Tikki turned to Plagg with a scowl. "You're such a liar! You know that she successfully broke the spell and that he will become human again as soon as the sun rises. What will Marinette think when she wakes up with a man in her bed?"

"What? Sometimes humans need a little boost!" said Plagg, smug. "And he's not just some random man, he's the one that she loves!"

* * *

Chat Noir rushed through the streets and reached her slightly open bedroom window just as he turned back into a cat.

He wandered into the bedroom and saw Marinette sleeping fitfully, and moved over to her to snuggle beside her. She immediately calmed down. He made a mental note to stay awake and leave as soon as the spell broke at dawn and he became human again.

Of course, he fell asleep, and when he woke up, he was cradling Marinette, who was spooning into him, her black hair fanning out across the pillow, her skin soft to the touch.

They woke up at the same time, and Marinette smiled as Adrien stiffened, preparing for her to scream or freak out. To his surprise, she simply laughed and shook her head as she got out of bed, talking to herself.

"Man, I really must be going crazy," she said. "Alya's gonna tell me I'm losing my mind. My daydreams of Adrien are so vivid that I actually think he's in my bed. I really must be losing it."

She shook her head and walked into the bathroom, and Adrien took the chance to slip away through the bedroom window, transforming into Chat Noir and sneaking away.

"Whatever," she thought as she brushed her teeth. "I need to focus on my new kitty."

But when she came back out of the bathroom, she quickly realized that her cat was gone, nowhere to be found in the apartment.

* * *

Back at the Agreste Mansion, Plagg scowled at him. "Why didn't you say anything to her?!"

"Are you crazy? I'm lucky she thought I was a daydream and didn't realize that I was actually there. I can't just do that to a friend! Especially when my heart belongs to someone else."

Plagg could practically see Tikki snickering in his head as he groaned into a pillow.

"What? Did I do the wrong thing?"

"Let's just say that both you and your friend are incredibly dense and bad at seeing things right in front of your eyes."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Kid, you think Marinette is cute, right?"

"Yes. Why?"

"Do me a favor. Ask her out for a coffee. I promise you won't regret it."

"But I don't know how I can even face her after this!"

"Don't be dramatic. She'll be over the moon. I can just bet on it."


	3. Sylvia

"It's been two weeks, kid," said Plagg, exasperated. He had been summoned to Adrien's side for the fourth time in two days, and the young man was looking more and more disheveled each time he saw him.

"Why haven't you asked Marinette out for a coffee yet?"

"I really don't know, Plagg. And it's not even like I don't want to—I'm just…I don't know, afraid? I'm afraid I'm going to end up telling her that she wasn't just imagining me in her bed and I'm afraid I'm going to tell her about being Chat Noir and I just…I don't know if I can handle it."

 _If you told her you were Chat Noir, that would solve about 90% of your problems_ , thought Plagg, sighing internally.

"All it takes is a text, kid. You don't even have to call her, if you're nervous talking over the phone or asking her in person after rehearsal."

Adrien shook his head.

There was no doubt that he felt extremely drawn to Marinette; he had always admired her work ethic, and now that he was getting to know her, he was definitely starting to fall for her, especially after spending an evening alone with her in her apartment (even though he had been a cat at the time).

At the same time, he felt a little confused about what he really felt; he still hadn't forgotten the feeling of Ladybug's kiss on his lips, and he really wanted to know who she was, especially since he knew she was a dancer at the POB as well.

But perhaps it would have been selfish for him to wait for her to reveal herself. After all, she had said she already liked someone, and it wasn't like he wasn't interested in Marinette.

He was going to do it.

He was going to ask Marinette out for a coffee.

Tomorrow.

* * *

"Do you think Adrien likes me, Tikki?" asked Marinette, as soon as she arrived, accompanied by her customary whirl of sparkles and light.

"Of course he does, Marinette."

"Then he must be shy. Otherwise he would have texted me by now, right?"

"Perhaps."

Marinette sighed. "Tikki, why is it that you never give me straight answers to any of my questions?"

"I just told you that Adrien likes you, didn't I?"

"Well… _yes_ , but that's not my point."

Tikki tittered lightly, her auburn curls glistening in the dim light of the kitchen.

"Don't worry so much, Marinette. Things will work out the way they're meant to in the end."

"That doesn't actually answer my question."

"Marinette, sometimes things are uncertain for a reason. Go with the flow, let fate take you where it will."

"I prefer planning for my fate, thank you very much."

Tikki simply smiled serenely as Marinette's phone buzzed.

"Ohmygod—Tikki—it's Adrien!"

"Why don't you see what he has to say?"

"He…he wants to know if I'd be interested in getting coffee with him tomorrow afternoon after rehearsal!"

"See? I told you things would work out."

"Whatever, Tikki. You're still way too mysterious."

"I like to keep an aura of mystery about me. Adds to my allure."

"Of course it does."

* * *

The next day, Adrien waited outside the studio for Marinette to emerge after her rehearsal.

Plagg appeared as he squeezed his fingers together nervously, beads of sweat forming at his temples.

"What are you so freaked out about? The two of you are friends! It's not like she's going to eat you. Calm down, kid."

Adrien nodded. "I know. I can do this. It's just a coffee date."

"Yes, you can. You're Adrien Agreste, Chat Noir, the coolest cat in Paris."

"I thought you were the coolest cat in Paris," replied Adrien, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, I am, but there can be two," said Plagg. "It's a tier, not a competition. And once you realize that, you can stop accidentally summoning me every time you get nervous."

"I'm sorry about that, I've just been really anxious the past few days. Père has been acting really strange lately, and this whole thing with Marinette has me really stressed out.

Plagg put a reassuring hand on his chosen's shoulder.

"I know things are tough for you, kid. But chin up. I chose you for a reason. You can handle this. It's just a short coffee date. And if it goes well, that's when you can start thinking about dinner."

Adrien smiled gratefully and then jumped as his phone vibrated in his pocket. He looked down to check who it was, expecting it to be Marinette. To his surprise, it wasn't her; it was from his friend Kim, who he hadn't talked to in a while.

* * *

 **Kim:** Hey, I need some advice. Can you come over?

 **Adrien:** I'm busy for a couple hours, but I can swing by in the evening if that works

 **Kim:** That's fine.

 **Kim** : Um…this is going to sound weird, but can you bring some food with you? I need sustenance and I can't leave my apartment right now

 **Adrien:** Sure, I'll stop at a bakery before I come over

 **Kim** : Thanks, dude

* * *

As Adrien put his phone back in his pocket, curious about what was going on with his friend, he felt a soft poke on his right arm and looked over to see Marinette standing there.

"Oh! Marinette! You're here!"

"Yes, it's me," she said, smiling at his enthusiasm. "Hope you haven't been waiting too long!"

"Not at all," replied Adrien. "Ready to go?"

"I've been in rehearsal for the past five hours with only a ten minute lunch break, so yes, I would say I am very, very, ready for some coffee."

Adrien laughed and patted Marinette on the shoulder. "It's hard being a professional ballet dancer, isn't it? Why are we doing this again?"

Marinette looked up to the sky and sighed before turning her head to Adrien with a dramatic sigh. "Destiny, Adrien. Everything happens because of Destiny."

"Wow, that's so philosophical. Very deep."

"Thanks, it was the fortune I got in my fortune cookie last night," she countered, sticking out her tongue.

They walked down the street toward the cafe in silence for a few moments, each wondering what to say next, when Adrien perked up and turned to her with a smile.

"You know, maybe I should start getting Chinese takeout more often. I could use some direction in my life, even if it's from a little slip of paper."

Marinette laughed. "What, being the most popular rising star at the POB isn't enough direction for you?"

Adrien shrugged. "You know what I mean."

"Actually, I don't," said Marinette, brows furrowing. "Isn't dance your passion too?"

Adrien's eyes widened as he realized how he sounded. "No, no! I mean yes! It definitely is, but that's not what I mean. It's the other stuff that's going on. It's a lot to deal with."

"Do you feel like talking about it? I mean, it's okay if it's too personal…I just want you to know that I'm here for you, if you need a friend," replied Marinette in a torrent of words, hoping she didn't sound too intrusive.

Adrien nodded slowly as they stopped in front of an empty table by the entrance of the cafe. "Actually…that would be really nice."

"Oh good, I'm glad…I'm always here to lend an ear," said Marinette. "Alya said that Nino mentioned that he felt that you could use someone to talk to other than him, since he's not sure that he can give you the best advice."

"Was Nino talking about me to her?" asked Adrien, raising an eyebrow.

Marinette flushed and laughed nervously. "Umm, well, no…actually, I might have asked her to ask him about you a little bit?"

"Oh!"

Adrien felt a warm flush spreading across his cheeks as a waitress appeared to take their order, and he was grateful for the momentary distraction as they both ordered two coffees. Marinette had asked about him. She wanted to be there for him. It was new, and unfamiliar, and nice, and—overwhelming.

* * *

"Why won't the kid just tell her he likes her?" whined Plagg as Tikki patted his head with a chortle.

"Don't worry, he won't have to. I think she's going to get there before he does."

"I don't want to hear it," retorted Plagg with a scowl. "If your chosen hadn't decided to hide her identity, they'd both know the truth by now and this wouldn't be an issue."

Tikki sighed. "Why is it that you always forget how complicated humans are? Sit back and enjoy the ride a little bit, will you?"

"How can I enjoy the ride when the ride isn't cooperating? Look at him, he's sitting there with red cheeks and twiddling his thumbs when he could be asking her to dinner. If he gets any more nervous, he's going to accidentally summon me, and that's going to make everything even worse."

"You should be used to this by now. You always choose the ones that need a little bit of a boost. You're drawn to it, you want to help them."

"You're making me sound so much mushier than I actually am."

"I don't think you realize quite how mushy you are. You're as sentimental and soft as camembert underneath that tough exterior of yours."

"How dare you compare my favorite food with my least favorite emotion?!"

"Hush! Marinette's about to say something."

* * *

"Umm…Adrien?" asked Marinette as she gripped her half empty coffee cup, her voice oddly high pitched.

"Yes?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course, what is it?"

They had been talking about many other things after their drinks had arrived, veering away from their original topic of conversation to subjects such as movies (Adrien loved romantic comedies and Marinette was more of a television person) and pets (Adrien loved cats and Marinette talked about the kitten she had received from a stranger who had unfortunately disappeared the very next day, causing Adrien to turn bright red, for whatever reason).

But the whole time, Marinette had been thinking about the fact that she had actually told Adrien that she had pressed her best friend for intel on him, and that he might have been freaked out by her keen interest.

"You don't…mind that I asked Alya to talk to Nino about you, do you?"

Adrien shook his head. "No, of course not! I guess I'm just a little surprised? But definitely flattered."

"So you're okay with it?"

"I mean, yes—well—I haven't really thought about it, since we've been talking about so many other things. But please don't worry about it! I don't mind at all. It's nice, that you cared enough about being my friend to try and find out more about me."

Marinette laughed with relief at his polite response. It was so very Adrien Agreste, and she should have known better than to worry about what he would think. In the short time that she had started getting to know him better, she had learned that Adrien was not one to judge anyone for being curious about other people—in fact, most of their conversations consisted of him gushing about what he had learned from Nadja and recaps of his conversations with Nino. It was clear that Adrien loved being around people and listening to them talk, and more than anything else, it was one of the things she was growing to love about him.

For a long time, Adrien had been a dancer Marinette had admired and someone she found to be extremely attractive, but now that she was finally getting to know him, she was learning about his quirks too—and it was the warmth wrapping around her as she finally felt like she was beginning to know Adrien as a person that gave her the courage to ask him the next question:

"Adrien…would you like to get dinner sometime?"

Marinette waited breathlessly as Adrien gaped at her for several seconds, his mouth formed into a small moue, as he processed her question.

"I—um—yes!"

"Yeah?" Marinette echoed with an excited squeak.

"Yeah! Um, how about next Wednesday? You don't have evening rehearsal that day, right?"

"No—no, I'm free."

"Great, so, um—do you want me to pick you up at your apartment? It's not too far from a really great restaurant I know."

"Sure!"

"Cool!"

"Wait, Adrien—how do you know where my apartment is?"

Adrien gulped. He couldn't exactly explain that he knew where Marinette lived because a vengeful jealousy spirit had turned him into a cat and two magical beings had dropped him off in front of her front step, so he made a flimsy excuse about flipping through the dancer's directory looking for someone else's number and coming across her address in the book and remembering it.

He didn't sound convincing even to himself, but Marinette at least pretended to buy it (even though she had a smile dancing around her lips), and they parted ways back at the studio, agreeing that he would pick her up at 7pm and that they would go for dessert afterward.

* * *

"You owe me five euros," announced Tikki.

Plagg shook his head. "Three. She asked him on the date, but he was the one who made the plans."

"Fine. But you have to admit that I was right."

"I will admit _nothing_."

* * *

After waving goodbye to Marinette, Adrien took a brisk walk to the neighborhood where Kim's apartment was located and grabbed a bag of croissants from a boulangerie two doors down from his building. It occurred to him as he was walking into the door that Marinette's parents owned a bakery and that he could have perhaps extended the coffee date longer by going there with her, but then again—perhaps she would have felt awkward introducing him to her parents before defining whatever it was that they were.

Whatever it was, it was pleasant, and Adrien was glad that Plagg had pressed him to take courage and move forward. Adrien knew from experience that his father was always the most unpleasant to be around during casting, and just as predicted, Gabriel had been in an extremely unpleasant mood over the past few days.

Adrien had the feeling he was going to need some happy moments to hold onto over the next few weeks, as they moved into their second production of the fall season: Sylvia, a beautiful ballet that was going to be performed for the first time in six years, and for whom a lead dancer had not yet been selected.

But Adrien wasn't going to think about that now. He was going to focus on his friend Kim, who was obviously having issues of his own.

As he rang the doorbell, there was no answer, so he rapped on the door itself, and after a few moments, Kim finally answered.

"Oh, Adrien, it's you! Thanks for coming man, I really appreciate it."

"Of course, Kim, is everything okay?"

"Come in, come in, I'll explain everything in a minute."

Walking into the apartment, Adrien was taken aback by the fact that nearly all the lights were off, and the kitchen was a mess. But more surprising was the fact that Kim was dressed in a pair of sweats and looking as though he hadn't showered in a few days.

The Kim that Adrien knew, a high spirited and confident sports reporter with a sporty style that he wore proudly, was not usually this sloppy.

Something was obviously very wrong.

"Kim, what's going on? You seem down."

"I am. I haven't told anyone else yet…but Max broke up with me a few days ago."

"What? Why? I thought you both were doing great. What happened?"

"Well, it's a little complicated. Have you…have you heard of aromanticism?"

"I'm not sure…is that the same thing as asexuality?"

"Not exactly. Asexuality has to do with sexual attraction, or lack thereof—but being aromantic means that you don't have romantic attraction, either."

"Oh, okay, I see. But what does that have to do with you—oh, wait…I think I get it..."

Max had never struck Adrien as someone who was searching for a romantic relationship, but he knew that Kim and Max had been best friends ever since lycée, so it wasn't that much of a surprise when they announced that they were dating.

"Max told me that he's both aromantic and asexual and that he doesn't feel like he can commit to me the way I want…and he feels like I deserve someone better than him because he doesn't feel comfortable being that person, even though he still wants to be friends."

"Oh Kim, I'm so sorry—"

"Did you know I was the one who asked him out?"

"I mean, it doesn't surprise me—"

"He said that he had never had romantic feelings for me, but he said yes, because I was his best friend and he wanted to make me happy, but honestly, I started noticing him becoming more distant from the very beginning. I tried to ignore it for a long time, but Max was actually the one to bring it up. He told me he couldn't do it anymore."

"Is there anything I an do to help?"

"I know he still wants to be friends, but I need some space. I feel lost, you know? Like I lost my best friend. And I know that Max knows that I'm hurting, but he can't do anything about it, and you're the only person I could think of calling. I feel like you would get it."

"Well…I'm not sure if will make you feel any better, but maybe if you do something else, it can help you take your mind off of things. Nino and I are going to see a movie by one of his favorite directors tonight—do you want to come?"

Kim's eyes brightened as he looked up. "That would be great, man. Thanks!"

"Actually, we're going to get dinner beforehand too—Nino just texted me to tell me that he's on his way right now. Can you join us? Or would you rather swing by later?"

"No, I can come now."

"Great! Let's go then."

As they walked down the hallway, an extremely petite young woman with short pink hair entered the hallway, walking quickly, arms swinging with purpose.

Kim's eyes widened and he gaped at her as she came closer.

"Who is that?" he whispered, as Adrien smiled broadly.

"Hi Alix!" he said cheerfully.

"Hey, Swan boy," she said by way of greeting, before turning her gaze to Kim, clearly giving him an onceover before passing by.

"You know her?" Kim asked, eyes wide.

Adrien nodded and smiled. "Oh yeah! She's a dancer with me at the POB."

"How have I never seen her here before?"

Adrien grinned. "Probably because she just moved here! She's hosting a housewarming party this weekend and said we could bring any friends we wanted. Do you want to come? I can be your wingman."

"Oh—well…"

Adrien's face paled as he realized he might have gone too far, considering that it had only been a few days since his friend had ended his relationship.

But Kim didn't seem to see it that way—in fact, his cheeks even seemed a little rosy as he considered the idea.

"You know what? I think I will come."

"Well then, it's settled! You're coming with me to Alix's party."

"Does that mean I'm your date?"

"I guess so! Don't worry, I won't cheat on you."

"Are you telling me that the Great Adrien Agreste is still single? How is that possible?"

Adrien flushed and laughed. "Well, about that…"

* * *

Nobody in Alix's family had ever really understood where she gotten her passion for dancing. With a history professor for a father and an older brother following in his footsteps, everyone expected her, at the very least, to be a studious child who excelled in school.

What they had gotten instead was a compact, spirited spitfire who personified the Shakespearean phrase "Though she be but little, she is fierce."

On her seventh birthday, her father had taken her to a performance at the Paris Opera Ballet, where she was riveted by the performance, and once she returned home, she informed her father that she was going to be a dancer, and that was that. Within two years, she was a student at the Paris Opera Ballet School, and there was no turning back; family tradition and academia be damned.

Alix thrived under the tight constraints of the Paris Opera Ballet School. Though she had a rebellious streak, she respected the strict, no-nonsense attitude of her teachers, and she quickly became a top student, recognized for her avant garde style and sharp technique.

She found fast friends in Marinette and Aurore, who shared her ambition, and she lived and breathed dance. Though she knew Marinette had eyes for Adrien Agreste and Aurore flirted with many of the boys in the school, Alix had never given much time of day to boys, though she liked them. It wasn't that she didn't want to; it was more that nobody had ever caught her attention. And after all, she moved fast; she doubted that she could find someone who could keep up with her. And if he couldn't, well, that was going to be his loss. Alix Kubdel did not look backwards for anyone, and she had no plans to change that anytime in the future.

She had to admit though—that tall boy that had been standing next to Adrien Agreste when she had walked down the hallway just now…something about him was intriguing. He'd looked a bit dazed, but somehow underneath, Alix felt that he could be a kindred spirit. One that she wouldn't mind making out with.

Alix had always made fun of the concept of love at first sight and she sure as hell wasn't about to admit it to anyone, but she was secretly hoping that Adrien would bring the cute stranger along with him to her housewarming party. She had said it was an open invitation, after all.

* * *

Adrien returned home after the film to a dark house, with nearly all the lights out except the one in his father's office. The only other light that was on was in the small office near the front of the mansion, which belonged to Nathalie, who was also his father's assistant in addition to her role as managing director at the POB. It was clear that she was working a late night; perhaps trying to figure out details of casting, which was turning out to be far trickier than anticipated. A guest ballerina from Italy named Lila was going to be starting a residency at the POB soon, and there had been rumors that she wanted the role of Sylvia, but given that she wasn't going to be in Paris until the production was already halfway through its run, it was necessary to find someone in the interim—someone who was talented enough to take on the role, but not popular enough to take the buzz away from Lila, once she finally arrived in town.

In the time that had passed since Mrs. Agreste's passing, Nathalie had also become a maternal figure of sorts—a cold and stern one, that was, but at least Adrien felt some semblance of care underneath her no-nonsense exterior.

He wasn't sure if he was reaching or if he was making it all up in his head, but he much preferred believing that Nathalie genuinely cared for him, at least a little bit.

She looked up from the papers on her desk to nod curtly at Adrien as he walked inside.

"Hello, Adrien. Care to explain why you're so late?"

"I was at a movie with Nino and Kim."

"Your father will not be pleased. You know that you need your rest if you are to look your best during all the cast photoshoots this week. You need to go to bed immediately."

"Père has no idea who to cast as Sylvia, does he?"

Nathalie narrowed her eyes and pushed her glasses up. "When did I say that?"

"Come on, Nathalie. You and I both know that he only asks you to stay here late nowadays when he's too stressed from casting."

"Your father is a busy man. He cannot afford to waste a single moment."

"Nathalie, you're the Managing Director of the Paris Opera Ballet. Why are you still pretending to be my father's assistant? You don't need to be at his beck and call."

"My working relationship with Monsieur Agreste is between me and him, and it is none of your concern. What is your concern, however, is the fact that it is almost 11pm and you are standing here and arguing with me unnecessarily. Did years of training at ballet school not teach you the importance of sleep?"

"Nathalie, I'm not a kid anymore."

"Then act like the adult you are."

"I'm going to go talk to him."

"It would be better if you spoke to him in the morning."

"He doesn't even come to breakfast anymore. This is the only chance I'm going to have to see him in person for the next week."

"Then you should have spoken to him at dinner."

"Let's not pretend that my father and I have a healthy enough relationship that he comes to meals at normal times."

Nathalie's stern gaze softened slightly as she sighed.

"You will find him in his office."

"As per usual."

* * *

Although Gabriel's eyes were locked to his desk as Adrien entered the room, he nodded in acknowledgement.

"You're late. You know how I feel about that."

"Père. You're overthinking this casting. Just pick one of the girls from the corps de ballet—you know that once Lila's here, everyone's going to want to see her."

"I refuse to have any ordinary member of the corps de ballet represent my company in anything but the best light. The ballerina chosen to dance Sylvia must be the personification of everything the Paris Opera Ballet represents, but she cannot outshine Lila."

Adrien shook his head. "You're looking for the impossible. Any dancer you choose will want to put her best foot forward."

"That is a matter of perspective," said Gabriel, finally looking up at his son with a cold stare. "Any obstacle can be overcome with enough determination."

"Not the one obstacle I know you're running away from," murmured Adrien, matching his father's stare with a steely look of his own.

"This is not up for discussion, Adrien."

"Burying yourself in work isn't going to change anything."

"As I said, I do not wish to discuss this. If you want to continue standing in this office, I cannot have you wasting valuable time. Either say something productive or go to your bedroom. It is late enough already."

Adrien scowled and leaned forward, ready to shoot back with a retort of his own, when he was suddenly struck by an idea.

"Fine. I can discuss something productive. I think you should cast Alix Kubdel as the interim Sylvia."

Gabriel frowned. "Explain."  
"She's a talented dancer, with the same spirit as the character of Sylvia herself and a unique style that is nothing like Lila's professional polish. She's young and new and doesn't yet have a name among audiences. It will be good for everyone."

"You say that she is much like the character herself—what if audiences prefer her to Lila? What will happen then?"

"That's doubtful. Lila is an international star, and three performances by an unknown are unlikely to change the hype surrounding her. Especially considering that Sylvia is hardly a popular ballet like Swan Lake or The Nutcracker."

Gabriel nodded slowly. "I will consider your thoughts."

* * *

On Saturday night, Marinette arrived two hours early along with Alya to help Alix set up for her housewarming party. After rushing around like a madwoman and making sure that all snacks and beverages were in place and with easy access, the two girls were ready for the guests to arrive—just in time for the arrival of the first two guests, two fellow dancers in the corps de ballet.

A steady stream of guests soon started filtering in, and Marinette was relieved to see how well it was all going, although she kept looking over at the door as the guests continued to stream into the apartment, in search of a young man with neatly combed blond hair and a sweet smile who had said he would try to be there on time.

As the noise from the party grew louder and louder, Marinette felt very grateful about the fact that the building had a very tolerant landlord named Master Fu and most of the residents of the floor coincidentally happened to be out on holiday that weekend, so there was nobody to complain about the rowdy guests in Apartment 15.

When Adrien finally came walking through the door, a young man she didn't recognize accompanied him. But from the way Alix's entire being seemed to focus in on him as he walked through the door, he clearly wasn't a stranger to her.

"Hey Swan Boy!" Alix shouted over the crowd, immediately capturing their attention. "Introduce me to your friend!"

Marinette laughed as Adrien and his friend flinched at her friend's piercing voice. After years of living with Alix, she had grown accustomed to her blunt, strident tones, but she knew that despite the fact that Adrien liked her, he had not interacted with her much, and Alix was someone who always made a forceful impression on people.

Adrien's friend had a strong broad jaw and jelled hair, and though his demeanor seemed friendly and engaged, his eyes were sad, and Marinette noted that Adrien kept glancing over to him as they moved through the crowd towards Alix and Marinette, as though he was trying to make sure that he was comfortable with everything that was going on.

"Hi Alix, thanks for inviting us! This is my friend Kim. He actually lives right down the hallway from you."

"It's nice to meet you," said Kim, extending a hand with a friendly smile as he looked down at the hostess of the party, who was easily more than a foot shorter than him. Up close, she was even cuter than he had remembered, and a thousand times feistier.

Alix smirked and leaned up to look Kim in the eye as she shook his hand and quickly dropped it.

"Likewise. So tell me, Kim, how do you feel about drinking games?"

Kim blinked in surprise before narrowing his eyes with a smirk of his own, and the air was suddenly filled with an electric tension that was palpable to anyone who was watching them—in particular Adrien and Marinette, who exchanged surprised looks.

"I love 'em."

"How do you feel about dares?"

"Even better."

"In that case, I dare you to come with me to the kitchen."

"I dare you to tell me why."

"I dare you not to ask me stupid questions."

 _What's happening?_ Adrien asked Marinette silently with his eyes.

 _I have no idea_ , she responded with a shrug.

 _Should we say anything?_

 _No, let them have their fun._

Adrien nodded and followed Kim and Alix into the kitchen while Alya, who had been watching their silent exchange from across the room, walked up to Marinette.

"Girl, now what was that all about? Is there something you're not telling me? You haven't given me any updates since you went to get coffee with him three days ago. Don't tell me you're secretly boyfriend and girlfriend already."

Marinette smiled and shook her head. "No, no—it's nothing like that! We're getting dinner on Wednesday but I think both of us want to take it slow. I feel like it's going well, but we're still getting to know each other."

Alya raised her eyebrow in surprise. "The way you both seemed in sync though…it's unusual, don't you think? The Marinette I know has never been so calm when it comes to a boy she likes."

"It's hard to explain, Alya…it's only been a short time since I've been getting to know him, but I really feel like there's something there. I know it started out as a crush from afar, but I just feel comfortable around him now. Like—I was the one to ask him out to dinner, isn't that wild?"

"Mademoiselle Etoile is growing up!" said Alya with a little cheer. "I'm so proud! When's the wedding?"

Marinette rolled her eyes and stuck out her tongue. "Calm down, Lady Wifi. It's just dinner."

Alya's eyes flashed fire. " _What_ —when did Nino tell you about that nickname? I'm going to kill him! **_Nino_** _!_ "

Marinette burst into laughter as Alya charged after her boyfriend, who was innocently chatting with Myléne in the corner of the room and hightailed it for the kitchen as soon as he saw her running towards him.

* * *

In the kitchen, Kim and Alix were in the midst of a champagne chugging competition. Adrien, Ivan, and Nino (who had managed to escape relatively unscathed after Alya attacked him) cheered on Kim, while Juleka, Rose, and Myléne shouted for Alix. Aurore stood by the sidelines, arms crossed, lips twisted in disgust. She had purchased the champagne for the evening and had expected for it to be a classy party, but she should have known better, considering it was Alix. She should have saved the purchase for a party that Marinette would have hosted instead.

Kim was quickly falling behind, and lowered his glass as soon as he realized there was no way to beat Alix at the game.

Alix slammed the glass down and delicately wiped the foam from her lips with a big grin as Kim whistled in awe.

"Alix, you are so crude sometimes," commented Aurore lightly.

"Calm down, Odile," said Alix, rolling her eyes. "This is my party, anyway. Learn to loosen up a little bit."

Alix shrugged at Kim, who looked concerned as Aurore sniffed and walked away.

"Don't worry about her, she's just got her feathers all ruffled ever since she became the evil swan queen for a few hours."

"Oh yeah, I heard about that!" said Kim, eyes widening. "What exactly happened?"

"Nobody really knows," started Rose, as Alya and Marinette walked into the room. "Most of us had already gone home for the evening that night."

Alya's eyes lit up as she realized what the others were talking about.

"Oh! You're talking about the strange incident from last month, aren't you? Everyone in my media class has been talking about it nonstop and wondering if it's going to happen again. Aurore and Theo—he's one of the other dancers, Kim—they were both possessed by some sort of dark energy or something that made them believe they were actually characters from Swan Lake before they were rescued by two. Isn't that wild?"

Kim shook his head. "But how did they return to normal? I heard something about superheroes or something?"

Alya pursed her lips. "Well, Aurore and Theo have both mentioned to the media that two people named Ladybug and Chat Noir saved them. They both seemed to be dancers as well. So maybe they're dancing superheroes?"

"And they said that they're here to be the protectors of Paris!" chimed in Myléne.

"That's super cool, I wonder if anyone got actual video footage of them," murmured Nino. "Alya, do you know if anyone's got anything? I think it could make a great documentary."

Alya shook her head. "I don't know, but I'll ask. I have some classmates in my course who live not too far from the studios. Maybe one of them got something."

"Dancing superheroes—how romantic!" crowed Rose. "Don't you think so, Juleka?"

Alix smirked as Juleka nodded with a small smile at the petite blonde, her cheeks flushing dark red. "Okay, you two, get a room already."

Adrien was uncomfortably warm at the turn of the discussion. As flattering as it was to hear his friends get excited about the idea of Ladybug and Chat Noir, he wasn't sure what he would say if they asked him about it. Dealing with his father's increasing strictness over the past few years, he had become a practiced liar, but nothing he had ever done had compared to his double life as a superhero now, and he wasn't sure how he was going to deal with this kind of pressure—it was all still too new. He was going to have to speak about it later with Plagg.

And then Adrien noticed his own worry reflected on Marinette's face. She, too, seemed uncomfortable with the way the discussion was going, and as he saw her brows furrowing together, her eyes darting back and forth nervously as she listened to their friends' chatter, he was struck by a strange thought. Was it possible that she was his lady? Was it possible that Marinette was Ladybug?

He was going to have to find out.

* * *

"Oh, thank god," said Plagg. "At least he's starting to connect the dots."

Tikki sighed. "That's more than I can say for Marinette."

" _Give it time_ ," mimicked Plagg. "Isn't that what you always say?"

"Yes, and for good reason. They're going to have the discussion tonight. I have a feeling in my bones."

"You had a feeling in your bones that tonight's dinner would be good too, and you were wrong."

"My specialty is the human psyche, not food."

"Sure, make all the excuses you want. I'm still not going to let this go."

* * *

Marinette felt a sense of relief when the discussion finally switched from the identities of Ladybug and Chat Noir to the movies that everyone was watching, and she walked over to Adrien, who was standing alone in a corner, looking pensive.

"Hey stranger! Are you having fun?"

Adrien smiled warmly at her. "I am. Are you?"

"Yes, I've been looking forward to this party for a long time. Alix has been hyping it up ever since she found this apartment."

"I'm glad to hear that," said Adrien, as they fell into a silence. Marinette could feel a question in the air, and turned to him.

"Call me crazy, but I feel like there's something you want to ask me."

Adrien's eyes widened. "How did you—"

"Call it instinct maybe, but honestly, who knows?" replied Marinette. "Does that mean I was right?"

Adrien hesitated before taking a deep breath and nodding, trying to be calm, though he could feel his pulse starting to race. What if he was wrong?

"I have a question for you—this might sound weird, but—are you—"

"TIME TO PLAY A GAME!" shouted Alix, charging towards them. "No more time for chit chat! Everyone in the kitchen!"

Marinette looked at Adrien, eyes twinkling. "Let's finish this conversation later? Maybe we can both lose at the game and come back out here to talk."

Adrien smiled, though his heart was still racing. "Sure."

* * *

"So, Tikki, still think you're going to win this bet?"

"The night is still young, my dear spirit of destruction."

* * *

Once everyone was gathered around the kitchen table, Alix rapped an empty beer bottle on the edge to get their attention.

"Okay, everyone! Listen up! We are going to play Slap or Kiss!"

"What is that?" asked Myléne. "I've never heard of it."

"Me neither. Is it like Truth or Dare?" asked Alya.

"Nope! We are going to go around in a circle and spin this bottle. Whoever it lands on has to leave the room, and we will decide whether they get kissed or get slapped."

"Well, that doesn't sound very nice!" commented Rose with disappointment, flushing prettily.

Alix laughed. "Okay, guys, I'm adding an extra rule to the game. Nobody slaps Rose or makes her slap anyone or I will deck them."

Adrien spun the bottle first, which landed on Nino, despite Marinette's wishes that it would land on her. After Nino grinned and left the room, Alya ran up to Adrien and whispered something in his ear. Her voice was so low that it was impossible to tell what she was saying, but a wide grin spread across Adrien's face at whatever it was, and when Nino came back in the room, Adrien bowed to him in a way that reminded Marinette very much of her cheeky battle partner, before gently clutching his right hand and pressing a kiss to his knuckles.

"Nino, my best friend, I have a confession to make. I've secretly been in love with you for years, and I'm afraid I must steal you away from your girlfriend. We can live together happily ever after, what say?"

Nino grinned and played along. "Oh my, this is a revelation! I'm sorry, Alya, but I think I have to leave you. Adrien's offer is just too good to pass up."

Alya waved her arms dismissively. "Yeah, yeah, go on ahead. I paid him to take you off my hands, anyway. I don't have the time to deal with you anymore. I'm going to marry Marinette instead. Mari! Let's run away together and leave these losers behind."

"Sounds good to me!" crowed Marinette, snaking an arm around Alya's waist and sticking her tongue out at the boys. "We don't need them anyway."

Next to spin the bottle was Aurore. When it landed on Alix, she snorted as she left the room, and it was no surprise to anyone when she came back in that Aurore lightly smacked her on the cheek with a satisfied smirk.

"Is that enough revenge for one night?" said Alix, with more patience than anyone had ever thought her capable of.

Aurore raised an eyebrow. "I don't know yet. We'll see."

Following Aurore was Juleka, and when the bottle landed on Rose, everyone knew what the outcome would be. Still, it was amusing to everyone, who knew that Juleka had it bad for Rose, to flush as dark red as a cherry when she bent down to kiss her on the cheek as the petite blonde giggled sweetly.

After Juleka was Alix, and when the bottle landed on Kim, everyone in the circle started whooping and cheering as he left the room, grinning broadly.

"I think you should kiss him, Alix," said Alya. "We all saw you staring at each other the whole night. This whole dare thing is obviously your weird way of flirting with each other."

"I can confirm that!" chimed in Marinette. "Whenever Alix likes a guy, she either punches him in the arm or challenges him to a game. I don't know why."

"Hey now, Marinette! Stop giving away my trade secrets!" protested Alix. "That was for your ears only."

"Sorry! I was just trying to help!"

"Like hell you were," muttered Alix, as Rose clutched her arm.

"Oh, Alix, if you like him, you should kiss him! He has sad eyes."

Alix's eyes suddenly grew stormy and dark. "No! I am _not_ kissing him for the first time in front of all of you!"

"It doesn't have to be on the lips or anything," pointed out Myléne. "It could be on the cheek or something too!"

Nino looked back and forth between Alix and the door. "Um—so a minute has passed, do we have a consensus on what she's doing before I go get him?"

Alix tossed her head. "I am not kissing him. He might be sexy as hell, but I barely know him. Can we at least go on a date first?"

"Okay, okay!" said Marinette, putting her hands up. "Nobody is forcing you to do anything you're uncomfortable with. Do what feels right. Nino, go get Kim from the hallway."

Nino nodded and brought Kim back into the room. It was clear from the look on his face that he was expecting at least a small kiss, so when Alix rushed towards him and slapped his cheek so hard that the sound reverberated across the room, almost everyone cringed along with him, afraid of what was to come next.

"Oh—" said Kim, touching his palm to his cheek, which was flaming red from both the force of the slap and the embarrassment flooding him. "I—uh— _ow,_ you have a strong arm. I, uh—actually, never mind."

Alix's face fell; she had misread Kim entirely, and although she had meant it all in good fun, she immediately realized that she had accidentally hurt his feelings. It was obvious to everyone that she had gone too far, and she had no idea what to do about it.

The guests fell silent; nobody else was quite sure what to do either, and Adrien and Marinette looked at each other in dismay before Marinette noticed the tub of cookie dough she had left to thaw on Alix's kitchen counter and had an idea.

"Okay, everyone, I think that's enough of this game for tonight! This housewarming party is now officially a girls' sleepover. For those of you who decide to stay, there are extra blankets and pillows in the closet. For those of you who are going to call it a night, we will see you at rehearsal tomorrow."

Most of the guests dispersed, though Alya, Rose, and Juleka stayed behind, while some of the other boys, including Adrien, lingered to help clean up the mess.

Kim slowly walked towards the door, his happy mood from before low once more.

Adrien ran up behind him and grasped his shoulder.

"Hey, Kim, I'm so sorry about earlier—are you okay?"

"I'm fine, seriously. I just guess I misread her—maybe I deserved it."

Adrien shook his head. "No, no—Alix doesn't dislike you at all. She likes you a lot, I promise! She just comes across that way and I think she was a little nervous—she's really confident, but Marinette's mentioned to me that it takes her a little bit of time to warm up to people, and sometimes she can act a little strange."

Kim smiled wanly. "Well, that's good to know. I think I'm ready to call it a night, though. It's been a long day."

Adrien sighed and nodded. "I understand. You know you can call me if you need me, right?"

"I do. Thanks—I appreciate it."

Adrien watched with dismay as Kim trudged down the dark hallway and goosebumps rose up his skin. He didn't have a good feeling about tonight, and his instincts were telling him to keep his senses aware.

* * *

Hawk Moth walked towards the window, holding the wooden butterfly box in his arms. He was surrounded by a pulsating wave of dark energy that was swirling with a keen sense of anger, mixed with sadness, and a blow to the ego, so pure and vivid that he knew it was the perfect moment to strike again.

It was too late at night for him to create an illusion like before; and anyway, the first attempt had not gone as well as he had hoped it would. Though he still had residual powers from the first emotional possession, he knew he had to try something different—and this time, he would succeed.

So late at night, it was the perfect moment for him to try something different than before. Though he still had residual powers from the first attempt, Hawk Moth was sure this new technique would serve him far more effectively; in fact, he wasn't sure why he hadn't tried it before.

He was going to invade the dreams of this young man and woman who were so distressed; cast a spell so enticing and bewitching that they wouldn't even realize they were in his grasp—and best of all, they would already be unconscious; half the legwork was already done.

He pulled a small blue bowl stuffed with soft white cloth out of one of the compartments of the box in addition to a large red vial labeled pride, calmly humming a pretty orchestral theme as he poured the liquid onto the cloth and watched it spread across the fabric.

Soon, they would be his.

* * *

Marinette wasn't sure at what point she had fallen asleep, but when she found herself walking barefoot around a magical forest glade that was so vivid and colorful that it couldn't be real, she knew she had to be.

It was an odd dream; though the forest was beautiful and green, she still felt uneasy, like there was an invisible undercurrent of darkness wrapped around her, and she couldn't shake the feeling.

She heard the sounds of rushing water nearby, and ran towards it, feeling the dirt between her bare toes. It was a shallow but quickly moving river, with small polished rocks scattered throughout, creating a small bridge that shined in the bright sunlight.

As Marinette peered into the water, she was surprised to see that she was dressed in white robes, with an olive wreath around her head as her hair fell loose to her shoulders. A quiver of arrows was strapped onto her back, and two gold bracelets jingled on her wrists—in short, she looked like a Greek nymph in a painting in the Louvre, or like a character out of _Sylvia_ , the ballet that they were currently performing, and she was starting to get nervous about it.

Across the river stood a young man who looked familiar and strange at the same time. He could have stepped out of the canvas of a Greek painting himself, but the one odd detail about his clothing was that it was all black—something that made Marinette do a double take, and want to look closer.

Because every single instinct was telling her that the man across the river was Chat Noir, even though the wobbly, hazy, dreamlight was making it impossible for her to see him clearly.

Even though Marinette couldn't make out the details of his face, she could tell that he was gazing at her too.

"Mon chaton?" she called out. "Is that you?"

"My lady?" he responded. "Is that you?"

"Yes, it's me, Chat Noir! Wait, I'm coming!"

Marinette stepped onto the first rock to cross the river, but as she lifted her foot to step onto the next rock, a gust of wind lifted her up into the air and across the water, forcing her to fly into his arms and knocking him to the ground.

Even though Marinette squeezed her eyes shut and clenched her fists as she prepared for the impact, she felt no pain as they fell.

It had to be because it was a dream, and she wasn't really there.

Still, somehow, she could feel the touch of Chat Noir's skin, and the feeling of his breath against her hair, and she looked up, expecting to find sharp green eyes behind a mask. What she found instead was soft green eyes in a familiar face she knew and loved, staring at her in shock.

Because the man across the river was someone she knew, but it was not Chat Noir. It was Adrien Agreste, and she was lying on top of him, cradled in his arms.

"Marinette?" he whispered, eyes wide. "Are you my Ladybug?"

"Yes," she whispered back. "It's me."


End file.
